Together again
by mccxrds
Summary: "I'm so sorry. Your daughter had respiratory problems and there was nothing else we could do. We tried putting her on a ventilator to help her breathe but she just wasn't strong enough." What if after eighteen years, Henry and Elizabeth find out the daughter they thought had passed, is actually alive?
1. Chapter 1: I remember years ago

**Hi! This is the first story I've ever written. Feedback is always welcome and I hope you enjoy this story.**

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 **18 years ago.**

"I'm so sorry. Your daughter had respiratory problems and there was nothing else we could do. We tried putting her on a ventilator to help her breathe but she just wasn't strong enough." The doctor said once he returned.

It had been a long 20 hours since Elizabeth had gone into labor. She couldn't wait to finally hold her daughter. The pregnancy had been easier than Stevie and she hoped giving birth would go smoothly. Henry and she had been talking about baby names when her water broke. She could see Henry had been trying to stay calm, but he had a slight panic and excitement in his eyes.

A little over an hour ago, their baby girl was born but quickly taken away. Panic had settled in Elizabeth's stomach as she wondered what was wrong. She'd heard her daughter cry which had eased her worry a bit.

Now, she held on to Henry tightly as she listened to her doctor telling them the bad news. She couldn't nor wanted to believe her baby hadn't made it.

"No, no, no." Elizabeth shook her head in disbelieve and Henry stilled beside her for a second until his arms suddenly wrap around her and she's being pulled into his chest.

Why was he holding her like this? He was supposed to blame her for what happened. After all, it was her fault.

Once the nauseous feeling dissipated, she used up almost all her strength to pull herself out of what seemed like a well. Her breathing was shallow, and her eyes became to lose its light. What used to be an intelligent, bright set of ocean-blue eyes were quickly turning into murky, lifeless ones. She shut her eyes weakly and stopped for a second in order to regain her breath.

"I'm so very sorry for your loss." The doctor told her before making his way to the door.

"Wait!" Elizabeth's voice caused him to stop. "Can- can I at least see her?" Henry felt her nuzzle further into his shoulder. Elizabeth was tense in his arms because she was afraid to relax, waiting for reality to come crashing down around her and for Henry to be upset with her.

"I'll see what I can do." He glanced at the pair once last time before walking out, leaving the couple to mourn on their own.

Henry held her close as they both let their tears fall freely. He was sad, grieving but most of all angry, angry that he couldn't protect his daughter, angry that he didn't save her. But most of all he was angry that his wife blamed it on herself. She may not say it out loud, but he knew the thoughts that were going through her head right now. What she did wrong or how she could have prevented it.

"Babe, you can't blame this on yourself." Henry tried to comfort her. His hand was in her hair, fingers combing through her blonde locks and gently freeing any knots he comes across.

She hadn't heard any anger in his voice, no malice, only sadness. She sat there silently for who knows how long, fighting against herself. Her body started trembling as her fear of him leaving grew until she couldn't handle it anymore. As soon as she felt his arms tighten around her, she broke. She slumped against him and wrapped her arms around his middle, face burying in his neck as the tears flow freely.

"Can't I? Henry, I should have taken better care of our daughter." Elizabeth whispered between shallow breaths and tears. The hand in her hair clenches for a second, loosening just as quickly to smooth down her tresses and over her back.

"This is not your fault, alright? You protected her all those months, you did everything you could." He assured her, lips pressed against the side of her head. "We'll get through this together."

That's when she started crying harder, sobbing. Of course, he knew exactly what she was thinking. An open book. It had been that way from the moment they had met. They stayed there until she finally calmed down, hours or minutes later she wasn't really sure- or cared. He held her and repeated his whispered promises between kisses to her hair, temple, cheeks, and eventually her lips when she felt ready enough to look at him with puffy, red rimmed eyes; she knew they were promises he would keep.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

 **Present**

It was a day like any other the McCord family household. Elizabeth had taken the afternoon off to spend time with her family. It'd been months since she accepted this job. She loved her job, but it sometimes got in the way or her family. They all knew she was making a difference but sometimes it felt to her as if she was missing a lot of her kids' lives.

They seemed to be settling in alright. The kids had the occasional bad mood and they would painfully remind her they didn't choose to change schools, but she brushed it off. She knew they would come around eventually.

The McCord family had a tradition where they would make a list of movies at the beginning of the year. No matter how busy life got, they had to finish the list within the year. Elizabeth remembered a few years ago when they spent December 31st watching four movies because they hadn't finished the list yet. A smiled lingered on her lips as she remembered that time. The time her kids were so innocent and thought she could move mountains.

"I thought you had the day off." Henry sighed as Elizabeth's phone went off. The whole family was on the couch watching a movie since it had been forever that they were all together and just enjoying a day off.

Elizabeth hadn't really been paying attention to the movie anyways. She had mostly enjoyed spending time with her family and watching them at peace.

"It's Daisy." Elizabeth picked up her phone. "This better be an emergency."

"Ma'am, I'm so sorry to bother you on your day off but this is very important." Daisy said serious and Elizabeth got up with a worried frown on her face, ignoring the stares she got from the rest of her family. Daisy was rarely this serious unless it was bad news.

"Daisy, what is it?" Elizabeth started pacing, wanting to know what it was about.

"I'd rather not discuss this over the phone. Besides, this involves your husband too." Daisy told her, and Elizabeth's eyes narrowed. She started to panic as she ran every scenario through her mind. She had no idea what it could be about.

"Do you want to come over? Or do we need to come in?"

"I'm already on my way to you, ma'am."

"Okay." She hung up and put her phone back in her pocket. She turned to find her entire family looking at her curiously. "Daisy needs to talk to us. She's coming over and apparently it can't wait." Elizabeth told Henry and he frowned. He as well thought about what it could be but came up empty. He hadn't been involved in anything related to Elizabeth's work lately.

"The both of us?" Henry asked surprised and Elizabeth nodded.

"I'll let Matt know, Daisy was already on her way."

"I guess movie day is canceled." Alison sighed as she already got up to press stop. She knew her mom had an important job, but she liked a day like today. Where they could just be a normal family like before.

"No, no. Nothing is canceled. We're just taking a break." Elizabeth protested, enjoying this time with her kids. She walked out to tell Matt, when Daisy's car pulled up. She saw the woman get out and rush towards her.

"Perfect timing." Elizabeth's joke barely got a smile from Daisy. The woman was wearing her anxious face. "Well this must be serious." She mumbled and unnerving feeling settling in the pit of her stomach. Whatever it was, it was serious.

"We'll be upstairs." Stevie told her parents as the kids got up and left the three adults alone. She wanted to know what it was about, but she figured if her parents wanted them to know, they would tell them.

"So, what is it? "Henry asked as he stood next to his wife. A loose arm around her for moral support.

"You might want to sit down." Daisy muttered, only scaring her boss even more but they sat down. "I know I went over the line a while ago with accusations regarding your husband but this time it could become front page news." Daisy lingered around the plot. She knew that if she wanted to do her job right, she'd have to tell her boss. She also knew that this was crossing a line she couldn't come back from and it might cost her, her job.

"Spit it out, Daisy." Elizabeth said, growing more anxious by the second and cold dread sleeping into her gut. She'd never seen her press coordinator this serious and she didn't like it. Daisy was avoiding her gaze. Eyes focused on the floor, lips slightly parted, she looked like she was having an inner debate about whether or not to speak.

"Sorry, ma'am. I have a friend, Linda, who works for a newspaper and she owes me a favor. I told her if she ever hears anything about a big story involving you or your family, she would give me a heads up." Daisy started. She grabbed a file from her bag and put it on her lap. "A boy approached her last week. He said he had a big story involving you two, but he wouldn't say what it was, only that it was big, and he wanted money. He was selling the story to the highest bidder and Linda shut him down but not before he gave her some details. However, if he contacted her, he might have contacted other newspapers too." A small silence fell before Daisy continued. "I'm not sure how to bring this. Uhm- he claims to know your daughter." Daisy said and both Henry and Elizabeth looked confused.

"Which one?" Henry asked, wondering if she was talking about Stevie or Alison. He felt a sudden urge of protectiveness as he thought about which one of his daughters it could be.

"The second one."

"Alison?" Elizabeth breathed, grabbing Henry's hand and squeezing it.

"No, ma'am."

"I'm not following, is this about Stevie?" Henry asked, clearly confused. Stevie was their first daughter. Perhaps Daisy had confused the two, she seemed to be anxious so that could be the reason.

"No, he claims to know your second daughter. The one that was stillborn." Daisy said gentle, knowing she was way over the line again but she was willing to risk her job.

"What?" Both Henry and Elizabeth said simultaneously. For a moment, the room was silent. Elizabeth was the first to recover from the information bomb her press coordinator just dropped. She got up and Henry wondered what she was going to do.

"I want you out of my house." Elizabeth said stern, not sure why Daisy thought it was appropriate to bring false rumors like this to her attention. However, subconsciously she started thinking about the possibilities but quickly shut her thoughts off. There was no way their daughter was alive, she'd held her after she passed. She had buried her.

"Ma'am, you need to see this." Daisy fought her and handed the file to Henry, who opened it to see what was inside. Elizabeth sat down, not used to Daisy speaking to her like this.

"Linda did her research. The boy, whose name I didn't get, claims that this girl is your second daughter. He said the girl's parents adopted her and she started looking for her real parents a few years ago. By doing a lot of research, and what looks like a few illegal hacks, she found out in which hospital she was born and who her real parents were. According to the boy, this is all the research she had, and she has known since before you became Secretary of State, but she didn't do anything with it. He thought since you became the Secretary, he could make money with this story." Daisy said, waiting for a reply. Henry and Elizabeth were looking through all the papers. From hospital records to back account transfers and school reports.

Normally, Elizabeth would have dismissed any rumors and perhaps even fire her employee- and she almost did when she came to her about the affair- but not about this. This she had to know and if Daisy was right- which she wasn't sure she wanted- she'd messed up big time.

"Linda did her own research and managed to find the doctor who was there the day you gave birth. He wouldn't go on the record but he, and I can't quote him on this, admitted to switching your baby with a baby that had been found at the scene of a car accident earlier that day." Daisy said and both parents looked up at her, tears appearing in Elizabeth's eyes.

It seemed like a terrible and unsettling strange coincidence that that there their daughter had suddenly died while being completely healthy during the pregnancy.

An uncomfortable coincidence that she didn't believe in at all but had eventually accepted.

"How sure?" Elizabeth mumbled out as though she was speaking through cotton, and then looked up at the woman sitting in front of her. "How sure are you?"

"The only thing that's holding me back is that there is no DNA test but other than that, the evidence is all here. I believe it. I know this is a lot to process but the evidence is all there. Now, I know I went way over the line on this one so here's my letter of resignation. I just couldn't live with it if I didn't tell you, ma'am." Daisy told the pair, getting the letter from her bag and placing it on the table. Everything went past Elizabeth so fast that she didn't even acknowledge that Daisy quit her job. Henry was just as silent as his wife and they didn't even notice Daisy walking out, nor did they hear their kids walk down the stairs.

"Mom? Dad?" Stevie laughed as she saw her parents in trance. Her smile quickly faded as she realized her word didn't register with her parents. She shared a worried look with her siblings as they moved closer to their parents.

"Is everything alright?" Jason asked worried and Henry and Elizabeth looked at each other.

"Yes, everything is fine. You guys continue the movie. Your mom and I just need to talk about something." Henry said as he grabbed the file and his wife's hand before guiding her upstairs. Elizabeth didn't even notice what was happening, nor the three kids that stared at her with worried expressions.

Once in their bedroom, Elizabeth shook her head as vigorously as she could and became unbalanced for a few seconds when she felt her head spin. She heard the concerned voice of her husband speak, but she couldn't fully recognize what he was saying. She let her tears fall freely as she hugged him.

Henry held her tight as a tear escaped his eye too. He could hear the small whimpers his wife was making. All her could do was try to calm her down. "Shhh, it's okay."

They both stared at the file, curious and terrified. "What do we do now?" Elizabeth whispered.

"Now, we find out the truth." Henry told her.

"I'm scared. Scared I get my hopes up and scared that it's actually true." Elizabeth said before turning to face Henry. "There is no good outcome. If it isn't her after all, we'll just be opening old wounds and if it is her, I could never forgive myself for abandoning her the past eighteen years." Elizabeth started to panic, and Henry tried to calm her down by rubbing her back.

"What if it's all just a really strange coincidence?" Elizabeth sighed weakly as if not even believing in her own words.

"One foot in front of the other, babe. How about we find out first?" Henry said and the two of them read the file and called Linda's number. Daisy had written it on a note for them. They talked for a while and Linda explained everything she knew. She told them she kept the story from running for as long as possible, but it will be in the news either tomorrow or the day after.

"- but honestly, I believe him, ma'am. We had our own investigators doing research and none of what you see in the file is tampered with." Linda finished, and Elizabeth closed her eyes before resting her head on Henry's shoulder. They were sitting on the bed with papers spread all around them.

"Thank you." Henry said before hanging up. He couldn't believe he hadn't been able to protect his daughter. He didn't want to imagine his life without one of his kids but without knowing so, he'd been living his life without her. She had spent the past eighteen years on her own, not being with her family. Anger rose as he thought about the people who took her from them. Was she still living with them? Did she see them as her parents? Did she know she had been taken? Did she think they gave her up for adoption? Questions swam through his mind, as did they Elizabeth's

Elizabeth picked up a copy of the birth certificate and ran her hand over the name. _Lauren Marije van Dam._ She did her best to ignore the fact that their names weren't under the columns 'mother' and 'father'. The country of origin stated The Netherlands and Elizabeth wondered what growing up there might have been like.

"Lauren, that's a nice name." Elizabeth whispered, and Henry nodded, grabbing a picture of their daughter from the file and looking at it. She looked genuinely happy on the photo which warmed his heart. She took after Elizabeth in the looks, but he also noticed a few things of himself in her.

"Do we tell the kids?" Henry asked, and Elizabeth sighed. She ran her fingers through her hair, clenching them against a knot she felt in the middle of her scalp before releasing them and pulling her hand out again.

 **TBC**


	2. Chapter 2: too good to be true

**Thank you for all the lovely reviews! Just to clear things up; I didn't choose France instead of The Netherlands because Elizabeth speaks French and I thought it would be interesting to have the girl speak a not so popular language. I, however don't speak Dutch fluently so excuse any misspellings in the future.**

"This is their sister. They deserve to know." Elizabeth said, and they sat in silence together for a while before heading downstairs.

Their kids were in the kitchen getting food when they walked down. "Everything alright?" Stevie asked, and her mom nodded before hugging her and pulling Jason in too. Her hand reached for Alison and Henry joined the family hug.

"What is going on?" Alison asked as Elizabeth wiped away the tears. She reached up to touch Jason his face like she is scared he will go. She closed her eyes as she recalled a memory of when Jason was just a baby. The way his skin felt like beneath her fingers.

So smooth and soft.

She opened her eyes again and Henry his expression was worried, but he knew better than to ask what she had been thinking about. "Why don't we sit down." Henry suggested, and Elizabeth sat on the couch with Jason and Alison while Stevie sat in the chair with her dad on the armrest.

"Remember before your mom accepted the position as Secretary of State, we talked to you guys?" Henry started cautionsly, and the kids nodded, all wondering where this was going. "Remember we told you how, when Stevie was little, we lost our baby?" Henry ignored the tears in his eyes and swallowed hard.

They had told their kids the story before Elizabeth became Secretary because they did not know if the press would write about it and they did not want their kids to learn about it from the news. Which is why they decided to tell them before the press got a chance to. It had been a tremendous impact on the three kids but eventually they came around.

"Daisy came by because there is a newspaper running a story about it." Elizabeth managed to say before the tears welled up again. She hoped Henry would take over because she did not know how to break the news to their kids.

"As it turns out, the doctor who delivered our baby, he- he switched her for a baby that had passed earlier that day and from what we can tell he s-sold her. He seemed to be depth and people who can't adopt are willing to pay a lot of money for a baby." Henry's voice cracked, and Stevie grabbed his hand while Elizabeth held her other two kids close.

"What does this mean?" Stevie asked, her brain still not having caught up with the news.

"It means that the daughter that we buried wasn't ours and our real daughter has been alive for the past eighteen years." Elizabeth said through her tears and a silence fell while everyone processed the news. She held her kids close almost as if she was scared they would disappear. She took in the scent of Alison her shampoo and she closed her eyes, remembering all the happy times with her family. It worked for a moment until a shot of guilt ran through her heart as she remembered her daughter had not been a part of any of it.

"How do you know she's not lying? Or doing it for the attention?" Jason asked, trying to be protective of his parents. It is not like he did not want the news to be true, he just didn't want his parents to get their hopes up.

"No, because she isn't the one who contacted the newspaper." Henry explained, touched by the protectiveness of his son. He knew Jason was starting to feel responsible and protective of especially his sister- even though he was still acting like a kid at times.

"So, she wants nothing to do with us?" Alison sounded hurt. She did not know how she felt about the situation yet, but she did know she was excited to have another sister. It was complicated, and she knew that, but she could not understand why her sister would not want to meet them.

"I don't know, Ali. Maybe but maybe she's just scared." Elizabeth sighed, having wondered the same thing earlier. She would not blame the girl if she did not want to be in contact and she could not imagine what it must be like for her.

"Do you know her name?" Stevie asked carefully. Just like her other siblings, she as well was not sure how she felt about the situation yet, but she knew her parents could use the support. Her mom looked like she was about to fall apart, and it slightly scared her.

"Lauren." Henry said, grabbing a picture from the file and handing it to her.

"She's pretty." Stevie told them, and she handed it to Alison who was curious as well.

"She has your bright blue eyes." Alison told her mother before showing the picture to Jason. He studied his sister for a moment. Dark blonde hair with light highlights reached the top of her rib cage. A smile on her lips while her nose crinkled just like his mom's does when she smiles. However, she seemed to be tall which she probably got from his dad. She was surrounded by three other girls and he guessed they were her friends.

"Does she live in the neighborhood?" Alison asked, already excited to meet her sister.

"Kind of." Her dad told her, and she looked confused. She figured her sister was born here so she must live in the neighborhood.

"She's studying in Philadelphia for the moment, but she was raised in The Netherlands." Elizabeth explained, and Alison her eyes widened.

"Europe?" Stevie asked shocked, wondering how a baby could have been sold to someone in The Netherlands. But then again if they had the money to buy a baby, they would have the money to pay for an illegal way into the country.

"Does she live with her adoptive parents?" Alison asked.

"I don't know." Henry explained. They had not come that far into reading the details of the file yet.

"Are you going to see her?" Jason asked, and his parents locked eyes. They had not talked about it because they wanted their kids to know first.

"I think we have to. It's going to be front page news in the next few days." Henry sighed. "Maybe not see but at least contact her."

"I think you should do that sooner than later. Do it before the press is all over this if you still want a chance." Stevie told them, and they nodded.

"That's why we will leave you be and go upstairs." Alison agreed and got up, followed by Jason. Henry took place next to his wife on the couch.

"We love you guys. So much." Elizabeth told them and they all nodded.

"We love you too." Alison told them, and they left.

Eventually Elizabeth broke the silence that was between them. "What do you write to your long-lost daughter that you thought was dead." Elizabeth sighed, dropping her phone.

"Maybe we should just call." Henry suggested, and Elizabeth nodded. She dialed the number but then looked at him.

"What do we say?"

"I don't know but we have to call her, text makes it seem like we're not really trying." Elizabeth dialed the number again and put it on speaker.

"Hi it's Lauren." They heard a happy, cheerful voice and neither knew what to say. This was the first time they heard their daughter speak. Elizabeth tried to imagine her daughter in this moment "Hello?"

"Hi, it's Henry and Elizabeth McCord." Henry said when he realized neither of them were speaking. A silence fell, and Elizabeth looked at him, wondering if their daughter had hung up.

"Hi." They heard her say and they knew it was their turn to speak again.

"Did we catch you at a good time?" Henry asked, saying the first thing that came to mind because he had no idea how or where to start.

"Yes." Lauren said and there was once again, a silence. "Look, I had no idea the story was going to get sold to the press. I'm sorry if it's causing you any trouble."

"It's not- we're not calling because of that. I mean we are but we-" Henry started, clueless as to how to handle this. Elizabeth had been silent the entire time but now decided to speak up.

"Hi, we only called because we just found out tonight and we- we want to know what you want." Elizabeth asked. Normally being very strategic but now her mind went blank and she just blurted it out.

"I don't know." Lauren replied, "To be honest, I doubt I have much choice since it will be on the headlines soon."

"That doesn't mean you're obligated to do something you don't want to." It pained Elizabeth to say it because she did not want to be rejected by her own daughter but then again, she wanted the choice to be Lauren's.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go."

"We understand." Elizabeth said, not being able to hide the disappointment in her voice. Of course, she did not expect her daughter to come home and live her life with them, but she had hoped the girl was at least a little more excited. She heard Lauren sigh.

"How about I call you somewhere next week?" She offered, and Elizabeth smiled. At least there would be another opportunity to convince her daughter to take a chance with them.

"That would be great." She said happily.

"Now I really have to go, I'll speak to you soon." They said goodbye before hanging up.

Eventually the kids came downstairs again, and they finished the movie while they talked some more. Alison was disappointed her sister did not want to see them and was determent to find her herself.

Later that night, Henry lay in bed with his wife in his arms. Papers from the file were spread around them as he read through them. He had started humming a small lullaby as he slowly combed her blonde hair. He used to sing it to Stevie when she was little and had a nightmare. It used to calm her down and it seemed to work for his wife as well. He had one arm wrapped around her shoulder, an act that could be interpreted as a protective move.

"Henry, tell me." She was not ready to read everything yet. It was better if Henry just told her because every time she would read the adoptive parents' names, her blood would run cold. She could not wrap her head around what happened yet. Why them?

"Her adoptive parents raised her for seven years before they passed." Henry read, and Elizabeth untangled herself from her husband's arms. She sat up against the headboard of the bed, their shoulders touching slightly.

"How did they die?"

"It doesn't say but I'm sure we could find out."

"Do you think what we're doing is an invasion of her privacy?" Elizabeth grabbed her daughter's picture again. So many questions ran through her mind and she imagined what it would be like to see her for the first time. Would the girl be happy and jump in their arms? Would she be distant and refuse to see them again? Would they even get the chance to see her?

"I do think we need to know the basics. Besides, most of what's in the file is proof that she's our daughter, not detailed information about her."

Elizabeth looked up into her husband's eyes, and nodded, "I love you"

Henry smiled and kissed her, "I love you too."

"How could this have happened? There are more than one nurse that could've seen something."

"There was a major car accident on the highway, remember? Most of the staff was working on them at the time and the nurses who delivered our baby stayed with you while the doctor left to help our baby with other nurses. Perhaps he had help from one of them, I don't know." Henry sighed, having a theory but he wasn't sure if that was how it actually went.

"That makes sense since Daisy and her reporter friend Linda told us he switched our baby with one found at the scene of a car accident." Elizabeth choked back a sob. "How could I not have seen it wasn't my daughter. It felt different than with Stevie when I held her b-body but I was exhausted and-"

Henry held his wife as she bravely held back her tears. He rubbed her back, sitting in silence for a moment.

"I think we should go to the fbi, let them handle this." Henry opted.

"He was 58 at the time which makes him 76 right now." Elizabeth sighed. She remembered him telling them he had been a trauma surgeon in Iraq years prior before switching to this. She was not sure what she wanted. Of course, she wanted him to pay for what he did to them but he could go to prison at 76.

"Secretary of State sends 76-year old veteran to prison, it would be a PR nightmare." She sighed and Henry tilted her chin up so she was looking at him.

"Hey, stop thinking like a politician. This is our choice and he kidnapped and sold our daughter, I think the world would understand if we did this." He tried to tell her. He knew she always put others before herself, including the world but this time he needed her to know that she had to make the choice and think about herself for once.

"Will our daughter understand?"

"We can always ask what she wants to do?" Henry sighed, wanting nothing more than to arrest this guy right now and let him go to prison.

 **TBH**


	3. Chapter 3: Alison

**Look at that, another chapter so soon (pls don't expect this every week) but your reviews got me really motivated so here is a new update. Feel free to leave suggestions for this story in the reviews as well.**

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Elizabeth was planning on telling her staff about Lauren before she had a meeting in the white house. She needed Conrad to know as well and she was sure Russel was going to freak out. The guy was always overreacting more than he should, but then again it is what makes him great at his job. Although she would never admit that to him.

"Good morning, ma'am." Nadine said, already waiting at the elevator.

"Good morning, Nadine."

"Minister Cheng called this morning. He would like a moment of your time later in the day because he is very disappointed with the way we handled things-" Nadine started as they walked towards Elizabeth's office. However, Elizabeth held up her hand and her chief of staff stopped speaking.

"Schedule a meeting for later today with Blake." She mumbled before walking in a different direction. Nadine gave her one last confused glance before continuing walking.

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"What are you doing?" Matt asked when he reached his office. He noticed Daisy packing up her stuff.

"I'm leaving." Daisy simply stated. She had resigned last night at the secretary's house.

"Did she fire you?" Matt asked confused. When he left the office yesterday, there had been nothing indicating his friend would get fired. "She can't just do this, she-"

A knock on the door made him turn around and swallow his next words.

"Matt, may I speak to Daisy please?" Elizabeth asked and Daisy stopped packing up her stuff.

"Yes, I will just- I was going to get- is that Blake I hear? Coming!" Matt mumbled awkwardly and left the office, getting and amuzed smile from his boss. Elizabeth walked towards her press coordinator and pulled her in a hug.

Daisy was surprised by this action. She was fired, yet still got a goodbye hug? It confused her but she accepted it anyways.

"Thank you." Elizabeth whispered as she pushed back.

"For what, ma'am?" Daisy was now completely lost.

"For finding my daughter." She smiled before heading towards the door. "Oh and you have fifteen minutes to unpack before I want you in my office for a staff meeting."

Daisy thanked her boss before unpacking her stuff again. She was grateful she didn't get fired and still had her job.

"Blake, I want everyone in my office for a staff meeting in fifteen." Elizabeth said as she walked into her office.

"Yes ma'am."

Elizabeth dropped her stuff and picked up her phone.

"Hey babe." Henry picked up. Elizabeth felt silly for calling when she had not been gone for even two hours but she needed his support.

"Hi. I'm going to tell my staff and I told Daisy she could stay."

"That's good."

"Henry, how am I supposed to just go to work when I know my daughter is out there." Elizabeth sighed. She couldn't focus because she kept thinking about Lauren. What would she be doing right now?

"Me too but you need to trust that she will call us when she is ready." A silence fell and Elizabeth sighed. She knew Henry was right but that didn't mean she liked it. She just wanted to go to her daughter, take her in and have her close.

"I love you." She replied.

"Love you too, now make a difference madam secretary." Henry teased and Elizabeth couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"Bye." She said before hanging up. She went to her gallery and saw the picture she had taken the night before. It was a shot of her daughters picture and she zoomed in so the other girls were cropped out, leaving Lauren on her screen.

She wondered what she looked like when she was younger. As a toddler, Jason looked a lot like Stevie. Alison however had been a spitting image of herself when she was little. Now, she had darker hair but Alison used to be blonde as well.

A knock on her door grabbed her attention and she locked her phone before putting it down.

"Yeah?" She said and watched her staff walk in. She didn't realized it had already been fifteen minutes. She got up and walked to the front of her desk before leaning on it.

"I asked you all here because I have some news that will probably come out soon and I wanted you to hear it from me." Elizabeth started, not sure how she was supposed to tell them. "I have a daughter." Everyone gave her a confusing stare but didn't comment. They knew she had a daughter, two actually and a son.

"I have another daughter. Henry and I were told she died at birth but long story short, she was switched and sold while they told us she had passed." Elizabeth managed to keep her voice steady and the tears at bay.

A gasp came from Matt who quickly shut his mouth again after a stern glare from Nadine.

"Daisy came by last night and I didn't believe her at first so I fired her." She explained, mainly to Matt before turning to Daisy "I'm sorry."

"It's alright, ma'am." Daisy gave her a supportive smile but her boss shook her head no.

"No, no it's not." Elizabeth took a moment before continuing, "I just needed everyone to know since the press does too."

Everyone nodded and awkwardly retreated out the door except for Blake.

"Ma'am, is there anything I can do?"

"No, thank you Blake." She smiled gratefully at him before he left as well. She sighed as she collapsed in her chair. Now that her staff knew, she still needed to go to the White House.

* * *

Alison vowed to herself yesterday that she would find her sister. She just didn't understand why the girl didn't cone to them, nor why her parents weren't meeting her yet. She was excited to meet her sister and was certain she would be able to convince her to come home with her.

After school, she took the train to Philadelphia, telling her parents she was studying with friends.

A few hours later Alison reached the school she knew her sister was studying at. She asked around and found out there was a party happening, so she asked around there.

* * *

Everyone asleep already?" Elizabeth asked when she got home.

"Jason and Alison weren't downstairs so they probably went to bed early. Stevie just went up and I was waiting for you." Henry said. "How are you feeling?"

"Confused but alright I guess. You?"

"The same." Henry said, kissing his wife before taking her upstairs to get some sleep.

She changed into short and a shirt before crawling into bed. "Henry what do we do if she doesn't want to meet us." She had not been able to focus the entire day because she was feeling anxious about the situation.

"You heard her, she'll call next week."

Elizabeth let out a saddened sigh and she felt Henry laying down next to her. "Only because she was feeling bad for me."

"How about we cross that bridge when we get to it. Let's give her some time first." Henry kissed his wife, leaving his arm around her waist to comfort her. "What did Conrad say?"

"He was happy. He knew how devistated we were when we were told she had died. Russel, on the other hand, warned me about the media."

"Just ignore him, babe. We're going to do this our way, whatever the media writes."

* * *

It was almost midnight when she reached the party. She was extremely nervous so when a boy offered her a shot, she took it. Before she knew it, she was laughing about every small thing but continued her search for her sister.

"Hi, I'm looking for Lauren." She said, and a girl pointed her to one of the standing tables in the garden.

"Lauren?" Alison said, and Lauren turned around with a smile which changed into a frown when she realized who was standing in front of her.

"Alison?" She asked. She'd seen pictures of the kids of the Secretary online. After she found out, it had been easy to find information because her mother became the secretary of State and much of their personal life was online.

"Yes." Alison said, and she giggled a little. Lauren narrowed her eyes.

"Are you drunk?" Lauren asked, and Alison tried not to laugh as she shook her head no. "O god. Come with me." She said as she put down her drink and took Alison outside.

"How did you get here?"

"I took the train." Alison said proudly. Suddenly, she was laughing and laying down on the ground.

Lauren sighed before helping her up again. "You're in no state to go home." Lauren said, "Do your parents know where you are?"

"Nope." Alison said like it was a good thing. Lauren put her arm around her sister's waist and slowly made their way over to her dorm room.

* * *

It was almost 2am when Lauren had Alison in her bed in her dorm. She managed to get her changed into pj's and she was fast asleep. She was thankful her roommate was spending the week in New York.

She knew she needed to call Alison's parents but this was not how she wanting things to go. Then again she was curious as to where her parents lived so maybe she could bring Alison back tomorrow.

Eventually, she took her phone to the hallway to call Elizabeth.

* * *

"Hello?" Elizabeth answered her phone in a sleepy voice, not even looking at who was calling. She figured it would either be Blake or Russel Jackson summoning her to the White House.

"Hi, it's Lauren. I'm so sorry I'm calling at this hour." Elizabeth heard, and she slapped Henry awake excitedly before putting the phone on speaker.

Henry shot up and looked around at what was going on. He gave his wife a confused look when he noticed her on the phone with a smile on her face.

"You're always welcome to call. Even at… 2am?" Elizabeth said as she looked at her alarm clock.

"Something happened but everything is alright." Lauren said, not sure how to tell them their daughter was drunk and in her bed.

"What happened? Are you alright?" Elizabeth asked worried, ignoring the fact that her daughter had just told her she was okay.

"Yes. Your daughter, Alison, came to find me today. I was at a party and by the time she found me it was late and she'd had a few." Lauren admitted.

"What?" Henry said in disbelieve and Elizabeth motioned for him to check her room.

"Where is she now?" Elizabeth asked worried. Alison was the last person she had expected to do this. Well, maybe not going there because she was pretty excited when she found out but getting drunk? She would have expected that from Stevie, perhaps even Jason but not Alison.

"Asleep in my bed. I have the day off tomorrow, so I could drive her home. Unless you want to pick her up yourself of course." Lauren offered. Henry returned in the meantime and shook his head, indicating Alison was in fact not in bed.

"We don't want to trouble you with it."

"Oh, it's not a problem."

"If you change your mind, let us know and we'll pick her up." Henry said.

"Just text me the address." Lauren said before they said goodbye and hung up.

"What the hell was she thinking." Henry said angry as he finally stopped pacing and sat on the bed.

"She wanted to meet her sister, Henry."

"Yes, but getting drunk?" Henry said, and Elizabeth sighed.

"I don't know, but what I do know is that we get to meet our daughter tomorrow." Elizabeth said. She was upset with what Alison had done, but in a way, she was grateful. Now she was going to meet her daughter.

* * *

"Wake up." Lauren whispered gently and slowly Alison opened her eyes. She closed them due to the bright light and groaned as she held her head.

"Welcome to your first hangover." Lauren joked, and Alison opened her eyes again.

"I feel terrible." Alison said as she slowly sat up.

"Here drink this." Lauren said, and she handed Alison a glass and an Advil. "It's coconut water and an Advil, works like a charm for me." Alison took them and drank the glass before looking down.

"Your clothes are on the chair over there." Lauren pointed, and Alison went to the bathroom to change. When she returned, she handed the pj's to Lauren and waited for what was next.

"Here." Lauren said as she handed Alison a small box with fruit and a small pack of crackers.

"I'm not hungry." Alison said.

"I know but I don't want you to throw up in my friend's car so eat up." Lauren said before grabbing some books, stuffing them in her bag and grabbing a pair of keys.

"Are you taking me home?" Alison asked, and Lauren nodded. They walked out the dorm and when they were about to leave the building, Lauren noticed a lot of reporters in front of it.

"Shit." Lauren said, and she pulled Alison back, so they didn't see her. "Let's take the back exit."

"Is it already in the news?" Alison asked, and Lauren nodded. She took out her phone and pulled up the news feed. It mostly consisted of her face. She'd spent most of the morning reading what they were writing about her and she knew it wasn't good. Some were writing positive things but most articles were putting her in a negative spotlight. She tried her best not to let it get to her, but it still hurt. She never wanted any of this and now she no longer had a choice.

"Go fast." Lauren said, and they ran out the back door to the parking lot. Halfway Alison groaned from the headache and they walked the rest of the way, taking cover behind the parked cars.

"Get in and eat up." Lauren said, pointing at the box she handed the younger girl before.

"Do you want to call your parents?" Lauren asked after a long silence. Alison had almost finished the food, but she took a break because she started to feel nauseous.

"Not really." Alison said, and Lauren nodded. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Lauren asked.

"For showing up. Ruining your evening and now your day off." Alison said sad.

"You didn't ruin anything. Sure, it wasn't the ideal way to meet you for the first time but it's nice to know you care enough to look for me." Lauren admitted.

"So, you're not mad?"

"No, of course not. Besides, I think you have enough to deal with once you get home." Lauren said, and Alison sighed.

"So, tell me more about yourself. What are you into?"

"Fashion." Alison said, excited the older girl was interested in her.

They spent the rest of the ride talking and getting to know each other. Alison was happy her sister was interested in her and her life. Though, she didn't really get a chance to ask her sister any questions during the drive. A few hours later, they reached Alison's street, but the police were holding the press back.

"Get down." Lauren said, and Alison did as she was told. They drove past the press with their heads down and into the street.

"You're not coming inside?" Alison asked, and Lauren sighed.

"No, sorry." She apologized but Alison looked at her. "It's complicated."

"Is it?" Alison challenged her. She wondered why her sister was being so difficult. If it was her, she would want to be more than happy to see her mother.

"Your parents want to meet me, I know but I'm not ready for that."

"Why not?"

"Your parents-"

"Our parents." Alison corrected.

"No, yours." She let out a sigh before gathering herself. "Look Alison, I know your parents didn't give me up but that doesn't change the fact that I didn't know that until last year. I just need time."

"Last year? You have known since last year?" Alison asked, the hurt tone clearly audible. She felt oddly insulted that her sister had known for a year but never contacted them. Never told them anything, that she existed.

"Yes."

"I get that you would maybe not want to see our parents but what about us? We're your siblings yet you had no intention of ever meeting us?" Lauren stared at her, at a loss for words. "If that article hadn't come out, would you ever have contacted us?"

"Alison." Lauren sighed.

"Be honest with me!"

"Maybe. For what it's worth, about a month after I found out, I wanted to contact your- you all but then your mother became the Secretary of State and I don't know- I guess not knowing was alright for me. Because meeting you all could go one of two ways. Either your parents would accept me, or not. Meeting them would mean they could tell me they didn't want anything to do with me. If I didn't approach them I could live in this- I guess fantasy where your parents would accept me if I ever met them. Contacting them would make it real and I'm not ready for that."

"You didn't think you owed it to your parents to let them know you're alive? They thought you were dead. They mourned you. You knew, you could take their pain away, yet you said nothing?" The words stabbed Lauren in her heart like a knife. She figured her birth parents and newly found siblings would be mad but not like this.

She was sad but then again also angry, angry they couldn't see it from her point of view. Sure, her parents hadn't abandoned her, but she hadn't known about that.

"I don't owe your parents anything." Lauren argued, not liking the fact that her sister was blaming her. "I didn't choose to get taken. I didn't choose to grow up somewhere else. I didn't choose to be raised by-". Lauren continued, her voice cracking so she stopped to find Alison staring at her with a pitiful look but still angry.

"But you chose not to contact us." Alison replied and opened the door to get out.

"Alison wait." Lauren pleaded but Alison was already slamming the door shut. Lauren sighed in defeat as she realized she'd screwed up. She watched Alison enter the house safely before driving off.

 **TBC**


	4. Chapter 4: The next step

**More of Lauren's backstory coming soon! I wanted to write it in a way that you guys are finding stuff out together with Henry Elizabeth. I know I write this every chapter but thank you for all the wonderful reviews, they really do motivate me.**

"Alison?" Elizabeth yelled as she heard the front door. She rushed to where the sound came from and found a crying Alison.

"What's wrong?" She asked worried, for a moment ignoring the sadness that she felt due to the fact that her daughter hadn't come inside to meet them.

"She knew." Alison sobbed and Elizabeth wondered what she was talking about. She was still mad Alison had gone off to see her sister but they would get to that later. Right now, her daughter needed her.

"What do you mean, baby?" Elizabeth asked as she wrapped her arms around her daughter. Alison gladly accepted it and started to explain.

"She knew about us since last year, mom." Alison explained and Elizabeth closed her eyes. She knew what Alison was talking about and felt immense sadness overcome her.

The fact that they spent the last year still thinking their daughter had died while they could've been told the truth, was something she couldn't wrap her head around. Not yet anyways.

"I'm sorry, noodle." She placed a kiss on the side of Alison's head, hoping it would comfort her. She tried her best to stay strong and be there for her daughter but she really needed Henry right now.

"Me too, mom. I'm sorry I went over there. It was clearly a mistake." Alison apologized and Elizabeth decided against punishing her daughter. This to her felt like punishment enough.

Her daughter stepped out of her embrace and she watched as she walked upstairs. When Alison was out of sight, she collapsed on the couch and quickly called Henry.

"Hi babe." He answered and she smiled upon hearing his voice. It calmed her down.

"Hi." She replied, holding back her tears.

"What's wrong?" He asked worried and she let out a laugh. He knew her so well. She only needed to say one word in order for him to know something was bothering her.

"When will you be home?" She asked, avoiding his question.

"In about twenty minutes, are you okay?"

"Alright I'll see you then."

"Elizabeth what's going on?" There was now slight panic in his voice and she knew she'd have to tell him something if she didn't want him to rush home right this minute.

"I'm okay. I just wanted to hear your voice. I'll explain everything when you get home." She promised and it seemed to do the trick.

"Alright, I love you." He told her and she smiled.

"I love you too." And with that she hung up. She dropped her head in her hands and sighed. What was she going to do?

Elizabeth went over all 'what if' scenario's in her head and she tried to imagine Lauren being part of this family.

She wondered what could have been different if she hadn't been taken, if she would have turned out more like her siblings, or if she would have turned out exactly the same.

She thought about what it would be like to have her growing up with her siblings, if they would have been like real sisters, having sleepovers and sharing secrets.

She was glad when she finally heard the front door and found Henry. He quickly wrapped his arms around her and she dropped a few tears she'd been holding back.

"What happened?" He asked gently and she took him to the couch where they sat down.

"Alison came home crying. Apparently, Lauren has known since last year that we're her parents." Elizabeth said hurt and Henry gave an understanding nod.

"And that sucks but babe, can you imagine what it must be like for her?" Henry asked, taking his daughter's side in this.

"I know that but I also know that I spent an extra year in agony and pain over the loss of our daughter." Elizabeth argued. She wasn't sure why she was getting so defensive because she knew Henry was right. It wasn't as if she blamed her daughter for anything, she blamed the people who took her.

"Me too." Henry whispered and he pulled his wife closer.

"The press is all over this thing." Elizabeth commented.

"Yes. I saw the accusations." Henry sighed and now it was Elizabeth's turn to look confused.

"Accusations?"

"Yes, didn't you see?" Henry asked her while he pulled out his phone.

"No, I checked this morning and the headlines were just 'secret daughter of Secretary of State'." Elizabeth said before grabbing Henry's phone and reading the new headlines.

'McCord daughter the black swan of the family?' 'Lauren McCord an abandoned disgrace?' 'Daughter of State an alcoholic?' The last article had pictures of their daughter at a party with a drink in her hand.

"Henry." Elizabeth sighed, dropping her head in her hands and massaging her temples. "I doubt she'll want to see us now." Henry looked at her in pity before pulling her into his arms. He had been having the same thoughts.

"We'll figure it out." He said, placing a kiss in her hair. He really hoped they would be able to figure it out because he wasn't sure for how long he could stay positive.

"What if we don't?"

"Babe, what can I do? What do you need?"

"You know what I need? I need to arrest the people who took her but I can't because the people who bought her are dead and- they let me believe my baby was dead." Elizabeth had tears welling up and they were blurring her vision but she refused to let them spill. "I couldn't protect her, I couldn't- I couldn't help her."

"It's okay." Henry's hand found her cheek and he felt her lean into his touch. "It's okay to not be strong all the time."

Elizabeth finally closed her eyes as tears rolled down and felt herself being pulled towards Henry. Two strong arms held her tight as she rested her head on his chest. The soothing sound if his heartbeat calming her down.

That night they decided to talk to Alison what it must be like for her sister to find everything out.

"Alison, can you come down for a second? We would like to talk to you." Henry asked and Alison walked with him downstairs.

"We thought you might want to talk about what happened today." Elizabeth nudged her.

"What's there to talk about? The girl doesn't want anything to do with us." Alison shrugged her shoulders and Elizabeth's eyes met Henry's for a moment. This was going to be harder than they thought.

"The girl's name is Lauren and she's your sister." Elizabeth argued.

"More like a stranger."

"Can you imagine what this must be like for her?" Henry finally spoke.

"She has had a year to prepare, I'm sure she's fine."

"Do you really think a year is enough for her to accept that her life has been completely put upside down?" Elizabeth filled a glass with water and sat it down, only then realizing her hands were shaking. All the emotions were finally at the surface.

"I just don't understand why you two are not upset with this? She lied to you." Alison was slowly raising her voice with each word until she pretty much yelled the last sentence.

"And she's been lied to her entire life." Henry simply stated.

"Whatever." Alison turned around and ran back upstairs, ignoring her mother's plea to come back.

It wasn't as if she didn't want to understand her sister, she could imagine it was hard for her. However, she just wanted Lauren to meet her parents so all of this awkwardness and tension would be gone.

A week passed, and Elizabeth grew more anxious by the day. She really hoped she hadn't screwed up things. Henry was trying to stay positive, but he was starting to get worried as well.

They were all eating dinner when Elizabeth's phone pinged. She sighed as she picked it up. She only just got home from the White House and was really looking forward to a night with her family.

'Hi, I have the day off this Friday. I know it's short notice but if you want I could come to DC? Lauren" Elizabeth read, and a smile appeared on her face as she showed it to Henry.

"She wants to come to DC." Henry said happy.

"Who?" Jason asked.

"Lauren?" Alison asked, and Henry nodded.

"She's coming over?" Stevie asked, excited she might get the chance to meet her sister as well after the stunt Alison pulled.

"She wants to come this Friday." Elizabeth told them.

"Wait, aren't you supposed to go to Myanmar this Friday?" Stevie asked, and her mom's smile disappeared.

"Damnit." She sighed and brushed her hand through her hair. She had completely forgotten about that trip. There was no way she could put it off.

She immediately felt an immense sadness rush over her as she realized her daughter's first memory of her would be that her own mother chose work over meeting her for the first time. She didn't, for a second, want her daughter to think she was less important than her job.

"We'll figure something out." Henry promised her.

After the kids had gone up to bed, Henry and Elizabeth decided they should text back. They stared at the text message, unsure of what to do or how to respond.

"You should still have lunch with her, even if I can't make it." Elizabeth told him.

"Are you sure? We could reschedule." Henry said. It didn't feel right without Elizabeth there. He knew how much she wanted to meet their daughter too.

"We will, but you should still go on Friday." Elizabeth said. She could see his inner debate of wanting to meet his daughter but also finding it unfair to his wife, to her. To her it didn't feel right to keep her husband from meeting her daughter, even though she wanted nothing more than to do it together.

'Hi. We would like that very much. Unfortunately, I will be in Myanmar, but Henry would love to. Just let us know when and where and he'll be there. Henry Elizabeth.' She texted back, and it didn't take long before they got a text back.

'If you want, we could reschedule? Otherwise around 1pm? We could have lunch although I have no idea what a good place is to eat.'

"Should we suggest eating here? The kids are at school anyways." Henry suggested, and Elizabeth nodded. They knew the press was all over the story and they wanted to keep her out of the spotlight as much as possible.

'If you don't mind, we could eat here? That way we won't be bothered by the press.'

'Sounds good. See you on Friday and enjoy Myanmar!'

"To be honest, I'm both excited and terrified." Henry admitted, and Elizabeth snuggled close to him on the couch, enjoying each other's presence. She wondered what he daughter was like, if she was more like Henry or more like herself.

 **TBC**


	5. Chapter 5: Henry

**I hope this chapter is not disappointing. I tried to write the reunion as well as I could but in the end I wasn't as happy with it as I would have liked. Anyways, enjoy!**

It was finally the morning that Henry would meet his daughter. They hadn't spoken to her after scheduling lunch for today but both Henry and Elizabeth knew this was a step in the right direction. They had spent the last week, every night, laying in bed and wondering what she would be like. However, Henry still had mixed feelings about the fact that Elizabeth wasn't going to be there.

He was chasing his wife around the house, making sure she didn't forget anything for her trip. When she finally had everything, she said goodbye to her kids before walking to the front door with Henry.

Henry touched her arm and she stopped to look at him "Babe, are you sure you're okay with me meeting her?"

Elizabeth let out a sigh as she put her bag down. "Henry I would never keep you from our kids. Especially not now and not her."

"It just feels like something we should do together."

"I know but I would never forgive myself if I stopped you from seeing her today." Elizabeth looked up at him and put her hand on his chest.

"I will call you and give you a detailed briefing." He joked and he was glad to see her smile at the comment.

"I expect a full report." She laughed before kissing him. "Have fun."

"Love you." Henry said as he stole one last kiss from her.

"I love you too."

Elizabeth left for Myanmar and Henry needed to make sure the house looked clean and neat for when Lauren would come. Alison still had the same additude towards her sister and Henry hoped it would change soon. He just hoped the rest of the kids would wrap their minds around it as well. It was a relief that all three kids had to go to school and work today because he couldn't handle it if they were here.

It was a little before 1pm when the phone rang.

"You can let her in." Henry said, and he walked to the door. Rubbing his hands together and ignoring the urge to rush to the door and finally wrap his daughter in his arms. After eighteen years, his litte girl- who wasn't little anymore- was finally home.

"Hi." He said as he opened the door. He took a moment to look at the girl in front of him. She was wearing light washed jeans with a black blouse tucked into it. Her black leather jacket on top of it with a black bag in her left hand. Her blonde hair was curled like Alison does sometimes and reached her ribcage.

"Hi." She replied, stretching out her hand.

"Henry." He introduced himself, not entirely sure why he said that. He was pretty sure his daughter knew his name.

Suddenly he was speechless. What do you tell your long lost daughter. He had no idea what to say yet at the same time there was so much he wanted to tell her and ask her.

"Lauren." She said, and he motioned for her to come in. She followed him to the kitchen, looking around while she did. "You have a beautiful house." She told him, and he smiled.

"Thanks." He said, and she took off her jacket and hung it over one of the chairs.

"Do you want something to drink?" He offered, feeling slightly awkward.

"Sure, water is fine." She smiled.

"So, did you drive here?" Henry asked.

"Yeah, I did. My friend has a car and I can sometimes borrow it." She explained although not sure why she felt the need to explain. She as well felt slightly uncomfortable and figured she should stick to longer answers so there would be no awkward silences.

"Have you been to DC before?"

"Only to drive Alison home. I got here a little bit earlier, so I could do a quick tour through the city."

"I hope the press didn't bother you that much." Henry said as he placed the glass in front of her.

"I just try to ignore them the best I can. My school however is not so fond of what they write about me." She joked but Henry took it seriously.

"You're not in trouble, are you?" He wondered if all of this attention was causing too much trouble for her.

"I cleared things up. Not a problem." She reassured him, for a moment confused as to why the man in front of her had been worried. She was almost a complete stranger to him.Then again, she couldn't imagine what it would be like to have your own daughter be a stranger to you.

So, what exactly are you studying here?" Henry asked, and Lauren laughed, earning a questioning look from Henry.

"You really expect me to believe you didn't read up on me?" Lauren smiled, "but I'm doing my minor in sociology with law here."

"Okay, you got me but I only read the things I felt were necessary." Henry smiled, glad she wasn't upset. There was a comfortable silence as they just sat. "I might have been a little bit too excited when I invited you over here for lunch."

"If you have plans, I could come back another time." Lauren said, already getting up.

"No, no. It's not that. We just don't have that much food in the house." Henry said, getting up and opening the fridge. "Do you like eggs?"

"Sure." Lauren laughed, and Henry got a pan to start making an omelet. "Do you not like to cook?"

"I do, but I just rarely have the time." Henry said. "What about you?"

"Cooking? God no. I'm a basic student that can make an egg and boil pasta but that's about it." Lauren said. "I know how to order a pizza though." Henry laughed at the statement as he was reminded of his own time studying.

"How are you liking the US so far?" Henry asked, wanting to know more about her situation in the Netherlands.

"It's nice, I'm having a great time."

"May I ask what the Netherlands is like?" Henry asked interested.

"It's okay." Lauren said, not really wanting to talk about it and Henry got the hint.

"One omelet for you." He said as he got a plate and handed it to her.

"Looks great." Lauren smiled, and Henry started working on his own when his phone rang.

"Do you mind?" Henry asked, and Lauren shook her head no. Henry answered the phone in the living room.

"Hey babe." He picked up.

"How is it? Is she there yet?" Elizabeth asked, and Henry grinned.

"It's fine." Henry said. "We're just talking."

"I wish I was there just talking." Elizabeth sighed, and Henry wished he could hug her.

"I know you do." Henry said.

"What is she like?"

"She reminds me so much of when you were her age." Henry smiled as he thought back on how he met Elizabeth for the first time.

"I've got to go again, I love you."

"Love you too." Henry said and walked back to the kitchen. He watched Lauren put his egg on a plate and put it on the table.

"Sorry about that." He said as he took place at the table.

"No problem. Everything alright?" Lauren asked.

"Yeah, that was Elizabeth. She really wished she could be here." Henry said and waited for Lauren's reaction.

"Tell her next time." Lauren smiled politely. "So, what do you do exactly"

"I'm a religious scholar." Henry told her.

"Have you always wanted to become a teacher?"

"No but it's nice, shaping the minds of our future." Henry took a sip of his coffee and started cutting his omelet. "What about you, any idea what you want to do after school?"

"No idea yet." She simply stated, "Although my friends haven't figured it out yet either so we're in this together."

Henry laughed as he picked his food and watched his daughter eat. It felt so surreal having the girl, who was his daughter, sitting at his kitchen table eating lunch with him.

"Did you have a lot of friends growing up?" Henry asked before noticing the frown on Lauren's face. She tried to mask it but he saw it nonetheless. "Sorry if Im being too intrusive."

"No, it's alright. Yeah I have one best friend who's like my sister. I used to live with her and her mom for a while. I've known her since I was four years old." Lauren stopped herself from giving too much away. She was surprised by how interested her father was in her. She had been very nervous and wasn't sure how this lunch was going to go but so far she enjoyed herself. She had kept her expectations low so she wouldn't be disappointed.

They both had their plates empty and Henry got up to put them on the kitchen counter. "Do you want tea or coffee?"

"Tea would be lovely, thank you." Lauren had a burning question she was afraid to ask. She wasn't sure if she wanted to know the answer to it. "May I ask you something?"

Henry turned around as he waited for the water to boil. "Of course."

"Are your kids okay with me and this whole situation? Because I don't want to get between you and your family."

"You're not and they're okay with it. " He assured her as he brought the two cups of tea to the table and sat down opposite of her.

"And Alison?" Lauren asked, slightly scared about the answer. She remembered her first interaction with her sister vividly.

"We talked to her and she'll come around. It was just her first reaction so don't worry about it too much." He tried to ease her mind, not telling her what had happened when they talked to Alison. He could see it did bother her.

"I'm sorry." Lauren started, not looking at Henry before making eye contact again. "She's right, though. I should've told you sooner. I let you believe I was dead for a year when you could've known the truth." Lauren told him and he sighed.

"You weren't ready." Henry put his hands around the cup in front of him. "Look, we failed as parents to protect you so you needed to learn how to protect yourself. I'd rather go through another year in pain if that means you'll be ready, than force you to do something you don't want." Henry told her and he noticed tears appearing in the girl's eyes but she was holding the back.

"Im so sorry. God thats like the least useful sentence in the English language." Lauren sighed as took a sip of her tea.

"Speaking of English, yours is really good." Henry tried to change the subject to something more positive, much to Lauren's delight.

"Thanks. We get English lessons from an early age."

"Did you have Spanish as well?" Henry asked, knowing how both Alison and Jason had Spanish in school.

"No but I did have French and German."

"So we have our own translator in times of need." Henry joked and Lauren let out a laugh.

"I'm useless in French but I can manage with German."

They talked a bit more, mostly Henry telling his daughter about what it is he does.

"I should probably head back." Lauren said as she looked at her watch. "I still have some studying to do."

"Okay, I hope we can do this again some time." Henry told her, trying not to sound too disappointed. She had been here for almost two hours but he didn't want her to go.

"Me too." Lauren said, putting on her jacket. "I had a nice time."

"Just call or text when you're ready." Henry said and walked with her to the door.

"Will do." Lauren said and opened the door but then turned back around. "Thank you, for being so understanding."

"This relaxed look is all a facade." Henry laughed. "We're giving you all the time you need although we would nothing more than to just take you in." This got a smile from Lauren.

"Noted." She said. "I'm glad we did this."

They said goodbye and she was out the door. He immediately picked up the phone to call Elizabeth.

"Hey." She picked up.

"Hi, am I calling at a right time?"

"Always." she said, and he heard her laugh a little.

"So, she just left." Henry started.

"How did it go?" Elizabeth asked, eager to know how Henry's first interaction with their daughter had gone. She really hated she couldn't be there, but she was glad he got to see her at least.

"Alright. We talked for a bit and the slight awkwardness was gone pretty quickly." Henry explained.

"That's great." Elizabeth said. Henry could hear she was trying to be enthusiastic, trying to be happy for him but he knew she wished she'd been there.

"Babe, she knows you wanted to be here." He tried to ease the guilt he knew she felt. He heard her sigh and they shared a silence.

"I just want to go home." Elizabeth whispered.

"I know you do, just hang in there. One more day and you'll be home." Henry tried to lift her spirits. "She apologized. Whatever Alison said really bothered her."

"Apologized for what?"

"For having known for a year and not telling us."

He heard her sigh on the other end of the line. "Henry, please tell me you told her she doesn't have to feel guilty."

"I did." He assure her. Guilt was a powerful emotion and he didn't want it to come between his family.

"I have to go, I'll call you tomorrow okay?"

"Sure. Don't worry too much and I love you." He told her.

"I expect a detailed recollection when I'm back and I love you too." She said before hanging up.

The afternoon went by pretty quickly. Henry stayed indoors all day, getting some work done. He checked a news site and sighed as he saw the headline.

"Father-daughter affair while Secretary of State is out of the country?"

"Does the newly discovered daughter of State only want to be in contact with her dad? She is seen leaving the house this afternoon while Secretary McCord is on a business trip to Myanmar. -" Henry closed his laptop when he heard the door open and Alison arrived.

"So, how did it go today?" Alison was still upset with her sister but also very curious as to what her dad thought of her. Henry took it as a positive sign that Alison was slowly accepting the new situation.

"It was nice." Henry told her, and Alison raised her eyebrows, pushing him to tell her more. "And we had lunch and talked." Henry said, not entirely sure what his daughter wanted to hear.

That evening during dinner, Henry tried to tell the kids as much as he could about their sister. Stevie and Alison were very interested whereas Jason acted like he didn't really care. Henry decided to give him a few days before he would talk to him.

 **TBC**


	6. Chapter 6: What happens in Iran

**Just a heads up; my story won't be in chronological order with the show, so you might see storylines happening later when in the show the happened earlier.**

Two more weeks passed, and Elizabeth was starting to get anxious. After her return from Myanmar, they had not heard from Lauren. The press was still all over it and were all saying something along the lines of them not wanting to do anything with their daughter.

"Do I look too pushy if I text her?" Elizabeth asked. They were lying in bed and Henry had almost fallen asleep when his wife's voice woke him up

"Babe, there's no guide to doing this. It's unknown territory for all of us but you're her mother so I think it's alright." Henry said in a slightly sleepy voice.

"I won't look like I'm trying too hard?" She sighed, turning to face Henry.

"I think she'll tell you if she needs more space. Usually I'd say yes but I've been wanting to contact her all week too." Henry said. They both tried to give their daughter space, but they needed to know what she wanted. Whether or not they should have more patience or perhaps she was waiting for them to contact her this time.

"Let's text her." Elizabeth said, grabbing her phone.

"Hi. We wanted to know if you were up to meeting again some time? It's totally fine if you need more space." Elizabeth typed and pressed send. They watched as two check marks appeared, indicating the message had been delivered. They stared at the phone for a while, hoping to get a quick reply but eventually she put the phone away and snuggled closer to her husband.

The press was still all over it but every day less and less news items appeared. They still hadn't heard anything, and Elizabeth wanted to text her daughter one more time before she left to her secret trip to Iran.

"Let's wait until you're back, okay? Don't worry everything will be alright just come home safely." Henry told her, hugging her tightly before they shared a kiss.

She'd already said goodbye to the kids and left for Iran.

They talked about Juliet and Andrew Munsey, but Henry was more focused on his wife who was currently tearing up.

"-And this is mostly about the kids. And you. A little bit of Juliet thrown in." Between her job, finding Lauren and now her secret trip to Iran; she still had to focus on Vincent Marsh's plane crash as well.

"You don't have to go." Henry pleaded, wanting to keep his wife safe. "You can still-" He started his sentence but was cut off by a kiss.

"I'll see you in a few days." Elizabeth hurried out the door before Henry could say anything. She knew if she didn't leave now, Henry would be able to convince her to stay.

Twenty-four hours later, Henry was anxiously waiting to hear if his wife was alright. Stevie and Alison had joined him on the bed. The phone rang, and Henry's heart dropped before he picked it up.

"Yes?" He answered. He was both relieved and sad it wasn't someone telling him about his wife. Sad that is wasn't good news yet relieved it wasn't bad news either.

"Your daughter Lauren is here. Should I let her in?" Matt asked on the phone and Henry looked confused before telling him yes and hanging up the phone.

"Lauren is here." He told his daughters. It was the middle of the night and he wondered why she was here. He hurried downstairs, hoping nothing was wrong with her. He didn't think he could handle two people he cared about getting hurt. He took the phone with him in case someone called about his wife.

"Hi." Lauren said as she was standing in the doorway. At the time it had seemed like a good idea but now that she was standing here, she wondered if maybe she shouldn't have come.

"Hi." Henry said, still confused. He waited for her to tell him why she was here.

"I'm so sorry to show up here unannounced but one of the reporters told me something and I wanted to call you, but I only have Elizabeth's number and she wasn't picking up, so I started to get worried and decided to drive over here." She rambled, and Henry still wasn't sure what she was talking about, but he had a feeling. "There was an attack in Iran and the reporter told me that is where Elizabeth actually is." Lauren finished, and Henry sighed. He pressed his lips together as a tear escaped his eye. He had been strong for his daughters but had now reached his breaking point. Seeing his daughter and worrying about his wife suddenly became all too much.

Lauren was stunned to see the emotion on Henry's face but quickly acted and wrapped her arms around him. He gladly accepted the hug and she rubbed his back, feeling unsure about what to do. He was her dad, but they'd only met once. After a while Henry pushed away and rubbed his hand over his face.

"I'm sorry." He apologized, slightly embarrassed. He had kept himself together for his daughter's sake and now he was falling apart in the arms of his other daughter.

"Not at all. I take it you haven't heard anything?" Lauren asked carefully, hoping he would tell her otherwise. She shot a silent prayer that someone had already called him and told him Elizabeth was okay.

"No. Alison and Stevie know about the situation but Jason doesn't. We're all upstairs." Henry said, guiding the way towards his bedroom. When Lauren walked in, she noticed the two sisters in bed, holding each other.

"Hi." Lauren said, feeling out of place. This wasn't the best way to ease into the new family situation.

"Hey." Alison said, for a moment not caring about her stands towards her sister. Right now, she could only think about her mom. Stevie looked at her newly discovered sister for a few seconds.

"Hi, I'm Stevie." She said.

"Lauren." She answered, and Stevie motioned for her to sit on the bed, so Lauren dropped her bag at the side of the bed, placing her jacket on top. She sat on the edge of the bed, facing Henry and the two girls.

"It's nice of you to be here." Stevie said appreciative, breaking the silence. It was weird to think of the girl opposite of her as her sister.

"I wish I could actually do something to help." Lauren told them, and Henry smiled at her.

"Being here is something." He told her. "Did you drive here?" He asked, filling the time. He could use the distraction.

"Yes, I was walking towards my room after a late-night study session when one of the reporters came at me and started asking all these questions. Almost immediately after I got into the car because I couldn't call. I wasn't sure whether or not to believe him, but I figured the worst that could happen was I drove here for nothing and woke you up." Lauren explained.

"I could put my number in your phone if you want." Henry said, trying to keep his mind off worry about his wife. Lauren got her phone and handed it to Henry. He typed in his number and saved it. Before he could hand it back, Stevie took the phone.

"Now you have mine too." She said before handing it to Alison.

"And mine." She smiled, and Lauren took the phone and put it back in her bag. She was glad Alison was talking to her, but she had a feeling as soon as Elizabeth would be back home safe and sound, Alison might not be as understanding

"Thank you." She said, genuinely thankful.

"That's what sisters are for." Stevie joked, and it earned a smile for everyone in the room. They all stayed silent and not long after both Alison and Stevie had fallen asleep. Lauren kicked off her shoes and sat further on the bed, legs crossed.

Henry got up and sat down next to her on the other side of the bed, careful not to wake his other daughters.

"I can't imagine what this must be like for them, let alone for you." Lauren whispered, both looking at the sleeping pair. "I have never even met Elizabeth and I'm already this worried." She wondered if it was weird, her showing up out of the blue. She was worried about a woman she'd never even met and for some reason it didn't feel fair to the rest of the family. It somehow felt like she hadn't earned the right to worry yet.

"She's my entire life. I don't know what I would do without her." Henry whispered back, his voice slightly cracking. Lauren doubted for a moment before laying her head down on his shoulder. He smiled at the affection and he was glad his daughter wasn't pushing away.

"You have three amazing and strong kids. Whatever happens, you will get through it together." Lauren told him.

"Four." He corrected her, and she lifted her head to look at him, knowing very well what he meant yet he clarified anyways. "We have four amazing and strong kids."

"And your wife is just as strong. She'll be okay, you have to believe in that." Lauren told him, and he nodded. He knew he should have faith but with every minute passing, hope and faith were slipping away.

"Was she upset?" Lauren asked, and Henry looked at her confused. "I never texted back. Was she upset about that?"

"Yes, but not with you. We believed we blew our chances. After everything the media was saying we figured you might not want to be in contact anymore after all." Henry explained.

"What? The reason I didn't text back was because of the media. I thought with everything they were saying you guys would think differently about me, so I figured I would play it on the down low until they stopped most of the articles about me." Lauren told him.

"We know better than to believe what the media writes." Henry told her, and Lauren sighed.

"I thought it would be better to wait out the storm."

"And we thought you believed the articles that said we wanted nothing to do with you." Henry told her and they both took a moment to process everything.

The phone finally rang, and Henry sat on the side of the bed and answered it. Lauren woke up the two sleeping girls and they quickly each sat next their dad.

Lauren waited as she watched the scene in front of her unfold. When she found out Elizabeth was okay, a smile broke out and she watched the two girls hug and kiss their dad. Henry had tears rolling down in relief as he held his daughters.

Stevie and Alison let go of their dad for a moment to hug each other and Henry turned towards his other daughter on the bed. He took her hand and she squeezed it. Before he could say or do anything, Stevie and Alison had their arms wrapped around their dad again.

A few hours later Alison and Stevie were asleep again while Lauren had fallen asleep at the end of the bed. Henry smiled as he watched them sleep and decided to take a picture. He texted it to Elizabeth, knowing she would get it if she still had her phone.

He carefully put blankets over his daughters and sat down in a chair next to the bed. Eventually he fell asleep too, no longer worrying about whether his wife was alright. She would have a lot to process but at least she was still alive.

By the time he woke up, it was almost 7am. He noticed he now had a blanket over him and saw Lauren was no longer laying on the bed. For a moment he wondered if he'd dreamed it but when he checked his phone and saw the picture, he knew it had been real. He figured she left and he started to think if it was something he said. Henry made his way downstairs and was happy to find his daughter on the kitchen table drinking tea. He smiled as he thought about how she must feel comfortable enough to go around the kitchen.

"Hi." He said, and she turned to face him.

"Good morning." She replied. Not even bothering to ask if he slept alright because she knew he didn't. The exhaustion on his face confirming it. She noticed him looking at her tea.

"Sorry. I only made tea, I promise." She apologized. She didn't want him to think she snooped around the house.

"It's totally fine. Make yourself at home." He told her before he made coffee for himself. He sat down next to her as he waited for his coffee to finish.

"When will she be here?" Lauren asked, and Henry looked at her. He wasn't sure if it was the sleep deprivation or if he only just noticed now but looking into his daughter's eyes was like looking into his wife's. He took a moment before answering her question.

"Between 9 and 10 am." He told her, and she nodded. He got up and grabbed his coffee before sitting down again.

"Would you like me to leave before then?" Lauren asked. "I just figured it might be a little too much if I was here after everything she just went through."

"I think that you being here would only help. That is if you're okay with that." Henry said, reminding himself that she might not be.

"Of course. Anything I can do to help." She told him, and they heard footstep coming down the stairs. Jason appeared and stopped when he noticed the girl sitting on the kitchen table.

"Hello." He said confused, looking at his dad for answers.

"Hi." Lauren said, and Henry stepped in.

"Jason, meet Lauren." Henry introduced them, and Jason just smiled uncomfortably at her.

"So, when did you get here?" Jason asked, wondering why the girl was sitting at their kitchen table at 7 in the morning. Lauren looked at Henry for a second before answering.

"I only just got here this morning." She said, not lying since she got here after midnight which meant very early in the morning. "I had the day off, so I wanted to surprise your parents with a visit." She told him, and he nodded, not really caring about the reason. He walked back upstairs, mumbling something about getting dressed.

"Thank you." Henry told her. He didn't want her to lie for him, but he was glad she did.

"No problem." She told him. It didn't take long before the girls and Jason were downstairs and they all had breakfast together.

"So, when's mom coming home again?" Jason asked. So far, he'd been kept away from the news since the press was now all over it.

"In about an hour or two." Henry told him, and he nodded.

"By the way, Alison your dad told me your birthday was yesterday. Happy belated birthday." Lauren said, breaking the awkward silence.

"Thank you." Alison said politely but not very enthusiastic. Now that she knew her mom was alright, she could stop worrying. She remembered how the last conversation with her sister ended and still felt hurt.

Lauren had figured since the last time they saw each other, they parted in anger, her sister might hold it against her. She tried to remember Henry's encouraging words; that they just needed time, and everything would be alright.

Alison talked to Stevie about a mutual friend and Henry's heart ached as he thought about how much Elizabeth would want to be here to experience this moment.

He would give anything to trade places with her, to take away all her pain and guilt. Yet all he could do was be there for her and to him that didn't feel like enough.

After a while Jason left the table and Henry followed him. He figured it was time he knew what was going on with his mother.

"Hey Jase, can I talk to you for a minute?" Henry asked as he walked into his room.

"Sure." He said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Can you come and sit down for a moment?" Jason sighed annoyed but obeyed anyways.

"There's something I didn't tell you and I want you to hear it from me. It's going to sound a bit scary." Henry started, and Jason was beginning to feel worried. "Mom's trip was to Iran. We didn't tell you guys because we didn't want you to be worried. Last night there was an attack and your mom were caught in the middle of it but she's okay." Henry added the last part quickly, assuring his son. "However, a few people lost their lives including Fred. He saved your mom, so she could come home to you. Just act normal around her but she has a lot to process and I just wanted you to know." Henry said, waiting for his reaction.

"She could've died." Jason stated, and Henry sighed.

"She didn't." Henry said, putting and arm around his son and he felt Jason leaning against him.

"I should be mad that you didn't tell me but I'm just glad mom's okay." Jason said honest.

"Me too." Henry said before getting up and leaving his son be for a moment.

Once he was downstairs again he found all three girls still at the kitchen table. It warmed his heart to see them getting along. Alison still seemed upset but at least she was talking to her sister. He only hoped Jason would find his place in this new situation too. He was starting to get worried but knew it was something he should do together with Elizabeth.

 **TBC**


	7. Chapter 7: Reunion

**Alright so the reunion you've all been waiting for. It's a short chapter but I wanted it to be focused on the reunion so enjoy!**

Everyone was eagerly waiting in the kitchen for Elizabeth's return and when they finally heard the front door, the three kids got up and ran towards the sound. They hugged their mother tightly as they welcomed her home. Henry followed the kids in a slower pace and Lauren lingered in the doorway, uncomfortable with the family situation in front of her.

She saw her mother for the first time. Her bright blue eyes were watery from tears and she looked exhausted. Her mother was blonde like her only Elizabeth's hair was short.

Henry had his arms wrapped around the kids and his wife. She looked up at him and they shared a kiss before the kids finally let go of their mother to give their dad some space. He let out a relieved sigh as he finally had his wife back into his arms. He was thankful that she was home safe, and he made a promise to himself to protect his family better from now on. His lips brushed against her hair. "I love you."

Lauren watched her parents interact and found herself smiling. She'd never seen a relationship like theirs before. The love they held for each other and the affection they showed.

Stevie had in the meantime grabbed Lauren by her hand and guided her to the hugging couple. Elizabeth noticed the blonde and slowly let go of Henry, holding on to his hand as if she needed a reminder it was real.

Time stopped for a moment.

They just stared at each other for what felt like minutes.

Lauren's entire life, her history, every question, every moment of doubt, every major event, the struggles of not belonging, of wondering, of searching for herself and her identity; every moment of her life that involves family and all the emotions that go with it was swept up in a tempest. She couldn't explain the range or depth of emotion that followed, but she hit the peak of every possible emotion in 20 second cycles.

Happiness, fear, relief, sadness, hope, making a convergent wave that just kept washing over her. And it wasn't just her who was having these feelings.

Elizabeth's mind was whirling a thousand miles an hour, she couldn't think to ask any questions or speak up. She had to fight her tears back and with every fiber of her being control herself from wrapping her arms around her daughter and never letting go.

When the world began moving again, Lauren finally spoke. "Hi."

The kids took a step back to give them some space. Lauren decided to take initiative and step forward, putting her arms loosely around the older woman's neck. Elizabeth gladly accepted the hug and put her arms on her daughter's back, taking in the moment for as long as it lasted. "I'm really glad you're safe." Elizabeth heard the girl whisper and she couldn't help but smile. She wanted to reply but knew as soon as she did, the tears would start spilling.

For the first time in eighteen years, the world finally made sense again to Elizabeth. Her daughter was back where she belonged; in her arms. Her baby girl was finally home.

She hadn't expected her to be here when she got back but it was a welcome surprise. She took a deep breath, smelling the vanilla shampoo her daughter used. She tried to grasp and hold on to the details the best she could, wondering whether this would be the only time she would hug her daughter.

She held on a little longer when she felt the girl push away but eventually let go. Henry's arm was around Elizabeth's shoulder again, making sure she was here. He wasn't about to let her go any time soon.

"Do you want something to eat?" Alison asked her mother, wanting to make it as comfortable for her as possible.

"No, thank you noodle." She told her, and Henry guided her to the couch, followed by the four kids. They all sat down in silence and Elizabeth couldn't stop looking at her daughter. Their eyes met, and thoughts ran through her mind.

The thoughts stopped when they heard an unfamiliar ringtone. They all looked around, not recognizing it.

"I'm so sorry, I think that's me." Lauren excused herself and walked to the kitchen to answer the phone. Elizabeth watched as she walked out, she was glad her whole family was together.

"Do you want to go to bed?" Henry asked, noticing the exhaustion in her eyes.

"Not yet." Elizabeth said. She was running on exhaust fumes now; the last two days had been insane but with all the losses, pain and destruction she wasn't ready to close her eyes just yet.

Her daughter was finally here, and she also didn't want to sleep through her visit. Henry knew why she was stubborn but decided to let it go. They all watched as Lauren walked back in. Elizabeth's face fell as she realized she had her bag and jacket ready as if about to leave.

"That was my roommate. She was worried when I wasn't in bed this morning and I completely forgot but I have my 'sociology introduction' exam at 1pm so if I still want to make it, I have to go now." Lauren explained. Stevie was the first to react and she got up. She hugged her older sister.

"Do come back." She teased, and Lauren smiled.

"Yes, ma'am." She told her before turning to Alison who eventually gave her a quick hug too. Jason just waved at her and so Henry wrapped his arms around his daughter. He wished she could stay here but he knew she had to leave.

"Don't ever scare us like that again." Lauren told Elizabeth and it earned a smile from the oldest blonde. A guilty conscience made its way into her Elizabeth's system. She hadn't meant for their first interaction to be under these circumstances.

"Thank you for being here." Elizabeth whispered as they shared a hug, and she felt her daughter nod.

"Bye." Lauren said before she was out the door again.

"I'm really glad you're home mom." Alison said as she snuggled closer to her mother on the couch.

"Me too. I'm really sorry you guys had to go through that." Elizabeth apologized.

"And on that note, I think it's time for your mother to get some sleep." Henry said, and Elizabeth protested but eventually gave in.

He walked with her upstairs and although she claimed she wasn't tired, she fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. He stayed with her for a while but then left to be with the kids.

 **TBC**


	8. Chapter 8: Breaking point

**Sorry this took a while. I have some idea's for this story written down but everything just was an unorganized mess (and still kinda is) but here it is!**

 **I know I've written Lauren in a way where she seems like the perfect daughter, but it didn't feel realistic so every now and then you can expect some rebellion and drama along the way.**

Elizabeth had slept through almost the entire day. She figured she would have nightmares and she was right. She took a moment to calm herself before going downstairs.

"Hey." Henry said when he noticed her. He was cooking dinner and he stepped away to kiss her for a moment. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes." Elizabeth lied, giving him a smile.

A week passed, and Henry knew his wife wasn't alright, but she refused to talk to him or anyone for that matter. She was closing herself off from him and he hated seeing her in pain although she was pretending she was fine.

He was sure she had PTSD; she fit all the symptoms. The nightmares, insomnia and flashbacks. It was something Henry had seen up close in the marines but seeing it with his wife was something else.

She would pretend like she didn't wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare, telling him she was fine when really, she wasn't. He didn't want to push her, but he knew if she kept going like this she would reach her breaking point.

and she did.

When he got a call that Elizabeth had been taken to the hospital for a possible heart attack, he knew something had to change. She had to let someone in, she had to talk to someone. He was okay with it if that someone wasn't him, but he couldn't bare seeing her like this anymore.

He felt like he could finally breathe again when he heard it was just a panic attack. She'd scared the hell out of him and when he walked into her room, she told him she was fine when he could see she really wasn't.

"Elizabeth please talk to someone. You need to let it out or it will grow and destroy you from the inside." Henry tried.

"It was one incident and I'm fine." She promised him, and he sighed, knowing he couldn't change her mind right now. They drove home for the day and he started thinking about a way to open her up.

That night, he woke up to find her side of the bed empty. For a moment he was worried, and he rushed downstairs to see if he could find her. He was relieved when he saw her in the kitchen with a spoon and ice cream, but it broke his hard to see her like this; almost fragile.

"Couldn't sleep?" Henry asked as he continued to walk down the stairs. She looked up at him before staring at the ice cream again.

"No." She simply stated, and he hopped on the kitchen counter.

"Want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about. I'm fine."

"Except for the fact that you were in the hospital with a possible heart attack." Henry argued, hoping she would finally open up.

"Can't you just let it go." She snapped before pressing her lips shut. She knew she had been on edge, but she just needed Henry to be a little bit more patient with her.

"No, I can't." Henry replied, hopping off the counter. "I almost lost you. I sat upstairs for hours with three worried kids and I had to tell our fourth what happened."

"I almost died." Elizabeth shot back, not realizing she was slowly raising her voice.

"I know so don't pretend you're okay when you're obviously not."

"I can't process for just a moment?" She shouted, trying to keep her breathing under control. The last thing she wanted was another panic attack.

"Of course, you can. I'm just saying you shouldn't process it alone. What if another incident happened, with our kids here, with Lauren?" Henry regretted the words as soon as they left him mouth.

"That's low, even for you Henry." Elizabeth said hurt. "Wait do you think I'm a bad influence on her?" Before Henry could answer the kids came downstairs.

"Why are you guys yelling this loud? We're trying to sleep." Jason complained aa he and Stevie appeared on the stairs in the kitchen.

"It's nothing." Henry downplayed it, not wanting to burden the kids with this.

"Then why are you arguing?" Stevie pushed back.

"Go back to bed, please?" Henry pleaded, wanting his kids out if the conversation.

"Come on." Jason whined. He was always being shut out of the conversation because his parents thought he was too young to handle things.

Alison walked, having heard the yelling because she couldn't sleep anyways. "Josh broke up with me."

"At 2:00 in the morning?" Stevie asked in disbelieve. Her sister always had the worst timing.

Not registering what Alison just said, Elizabeth continued her conversation with Henry. "Do you?"

"No of course I don't think that."

"Is this really more important than my shattered existence?" Alison whispered, and Henry sighed but before he could reply, she turned around and walked to the door. "No, forget it."

"What is going on?" Stevie asked, hoping to finally get an honest answer from her parents.

"Upstairs, now." Henry ordered and both kids left to go upstairs.

"Whatever you say." Jason said with a mocking tone, but Stevie gave him a push up the stairs.

"I can't do this right now." Elizabeth spoke with defeat and left to go upstairs as well. Henry followed a little later and found his wife asleep.

Alison stormed into her room. She never asked for much attention from her parents but when she did, this would happen. They never cared and there was always something more important. She unlocked her phone as she scrolled through her contacts. She really wanted to talk to someone but for some reason she didn't feel like talking to her friends. He thumbs lingered over a familiar name and she pressed message.

"Are you're still awake?" She typed and pressed send.

 _"Yes, is everything alright?"_

She smiled as she saw the quick reply from Lauren. "No."

 _"What's wrong?"_

"My boyfriend broke up with me and mom and dad don't care."

 _"I'm sorry, do you want to talk about it?"_

"No but I would like to have the option."

 _"I'm not following."_

"No one noticed I was upset, no one cared after I told them. I don't want to talk about it, but it would be nice if someone cared enough to ask."

 _"You need a day off. Eating, drinking, talking and no boys."_

"As if mom would let me. Besides, I don't really have anyone to go with."

 _"You've got me, and we can just chill."_

"Really?"

" _Yes, I could skip tomorrow's classes. I only have one boring lecture anyways."_

"Sounds good!"

 _"Are you sure? I don't want to be a bad influence, and have you skip school."_

"Yeah, I didn't feel like going anyways. Should I meet you in Philly?"

 _"Yes, should I pick you up from the station around noon?"_

"Yes, thank you."

 _"That's what a sister is for."_

 **TBC**


	9. Chapter 9: Broken relationships

**All your sweet reviews really motivate me writing so thank you!**

The next day, against his wishes, Elizabeth went to work again, and Henry left soon after. He drove to Philadelphia, hoping it would be alright to show up unannounced. He drove past the sociology building and sighed. His daughter wasn't kidding when she said reporters where everywhere. After the incident they were back at it again and he felt bad for her. Luckily, they weren't allowed in, so she was 'safe' inside

He parked the car and walked to the back of the building. He spotted a student smoking at the back entrance and he slipped in. He walked around, trying to find a front desk or somewhere to ask for help. Eventually he decided to just ask random students.

"Hi, I'm looking for Lauren." He asked a group of students and they just shrugged so Henry decided to keep on walking. Eventually he found the front desk and walked up to it.

"Excuse me? I'm Henry McCord and I'm looking for my daughter Lauren." He said and the woman behind the desk sighed before continuing writing something down.

"Sure, you are, just like all the other reporters. Without an ID I can't help you." The woman told him, and Henry realized reporters had pretended to be him to get inside. He pulled out his wallet and showed her his driver's license.

"I'm sorry mr. McCord. We've had a few... incidents happen so we're careful these days." The woman apologized.

"No problem. I'm glad you guys are keeping my daughter safe." He smiled at the flustered woman.

"Let me pull up her schedule." The woman mumbled as she clicked on the computers. "She is currently in class in the A-wing, room 423 but class is over in about 15 minutes." The woman told him before realizing he probably had no idea where to go. "Take these stairs to the first floor. Then go left and straight ahead. The second corridor or your left and room 423 will be on your right." She explained, and he thanked her before walking through the building. He found it quickly and leaned against the wall to wait for her. He didn't want to ambush her in front of her entire class, so he waited a few feet to the side. He checked his phone and saw he had a few more minutes to spare so he decided to call Elizabeth.

"Hey." Elizabeth answer and if Henry hadn't known better, he wouldn't have suspected anything. He would have thought she was back to her old self, but she wasn't.

"Hi. I just wanted to see how you were doing." He said, and he waited for a reply.

"I'm fine, quiet day at the office." She told him, and he sighed.

"I love you, you know that right?" Henry told her.

"I love you too. Henry are you okay?" Henry heard her ask and he let out a small laugh. She was worried about him while it should be the other way around.

"Yes." Henry promised her because he was fine.

"I've got to go. I'll see you tonight." She said before hanging up.

Henry put away his phone and waited for class to be over. It didn't take long before the door opened, and students walked out. Some looked at him as if they recognized him from somewhere and another walked past him. He frowned when he didn't see her, and he grabbed a student's attention.

"I'm looking for Lauren?" He asked, and the boy just shrugged his shoulders.

"Haven't seen her all day, sorry man." He said before joining his friends and walking away.

Henry decided his best shot was to go back to the front desk. "Hi again, can you tell me where I can find Lauren's room?"

The woman looked up at him and smiled. "Yes, just a second." She started typing on the computer and grabbed a map of campus. "We're now here. The building for international students is here and this is her room number."

The woman scribbled a number on the map and Henry thanked her before heading out. He avoided the press and walked into the building. It didn't take long before he found her room and knocked on the door.

He smiled awkwardly when she opened the door. "Henry?"

"Hi, sorry to just step by."

"Sorry, now is not really a good time."

"You're missing the movie." Henry heard a familiar voice. Lauren closed her eyes as she put head against the door and waited for Henry to speak.

"Is that Alison?" Lauren thought it was better to show him than say anything, so she nodded as she opened the door and let him in.

"Dad?" Alison jumped up from the bed. The last person she expected here was her dad.

"What are you going here, why aren't you at school?"

"I didn't feel like going." Alison said, standing next to her sister and opposite of their dad.

Henry looked around the room and spotted school supplies, bags of chips and popcorn and soda. However, what got his attention was the half empty vodka bottle on the floor.

"You gave your underage sister alcohol, again?" Henry turned to Lauren, wondering what she had been thinking.

"It's not like she hasn't been drunk before." She tried to joke but saw Henry's furious look and pressed her lips together, "Okay, too soon but come on, she's sixteen. Besides, I made sure she didn't drink more than three shots."

"Last time she was here, look what happened." He recalled the memory of Alison being drunk when she first met her sister.

"Excuse me? Are you blaming me for that?" Lauren had been just as surprised as their parents to find Alison had come looking for her that night.

"Look dad, it was my fault." Alison tried to intervene.

"No, it wasn't." Lauren said in disbelieve and turned from Alison to Henry. "Until last night, Alison and I were not on good terms but that should tell you something. Your daughter was hurting, and she felt like she could only come to me; the person she probably wouldn't have put on her top ten favorites list any time soon."

"Are you lecturing me about how I should raise my daughter?" He wasn't one to show anger in a discussion but with everything going on, even he had reached his breaking point.

"Well clearly she's unhappy. She feels like she can't even talk to you."

"She's not my only kid, I've got two more and they know they can always talk to us." Henry shot back, and Lauren slowly nodded. Henry realized his mistake, but he knew whatever he said right now, wouldn't do any good.

"I think it's time you leave." Lauren told him, opening the door for him. She didn't understand why he had included her in his kids only a few weeks ago. She remembered him telling her she was his daughter too, yet it seemed he clearly thought differently now.

"No, I'm sorry-" Henry started but Lauren didn't want to hear it.

"I don't care."

Henry nodded, knowing this wasn't something they would get over any time soon. It was best he just left but not without his other daughter. "Alison."

"I'm not going, you can't tell me what to do." Alison took a stand and crossed her arms. She decided it was time she stood up to her parents and supported her sister. She couldn't believe her dad had basically denied Lauren was his daughter.

"It's okay. We'll catch up some other time." Lauren told her, not wanting Alison to get in more trouble because of her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Text me any time." Lauren hugged her sister; a weird and new experience for both. Last time they'd hugged it had been quick and more out of obligation.

"Thank you for today."

"No problem." Lauren smiled and let Alison out. She avoided Henry's gaze and shut the door.

The drive back to DC was completely quiet. Both father and daughter didn't really want to talk about what happened. When they finally reached the house, Alison stormed upstairs, and Henry walked to the study. He slammed his fist on the table. How could he have been so stupid. They were finally on good terms with their daughter and now he had messed it up. How was he going to tell Elizabeth?

He didn't have much time to think because the front door opened, revealing his wife.

"Hi. Finally, a day I'm home early. It was such a slow day and-" Elizabeth talked about her day, but Henry didn't listen. Half way through her sentence he cut in.

"I need to tell you something."

"Okay what is it?" Elizabeth had a serious look on her face and when he didn't reply, she sat down. "Henry, what's going on?"

"I went to Lauren today." He admitted, and her eyes widened.

"Why? What happened?"

"I found Alison there and I kind of got mad." Henry knew this was something he had to share with her, but he didn't want it to be another thing she had to deal with.

"What was Alison doing there?"

"She said she just wanted someone to talk to." Henry spoke, and Elizabeth nodded. She wasn't happy with the fact that Alison had skipped school, but it wasn't a major problem. She wondered what else happened that caused Henry to act like this.

"When I saw Lauren had given Alison alcohol, I got upset and we got into an argument." He waited for Elizabeth to say something, but she stayed quiet. "I said something I deeply regret."

"What did you do?" Elizabeth whispered, not sure if she wanted to hear. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the coming words.

"I told her Alison isn't my only child and I have two more."

"Henry." Elizabeth sighed. She knew he hadn't meant it.

"It's just out of habit. Of course, I think she's my daughter, I just-" Henry chocked on the next words and Elizabeth quickly got up to hug him.

"I know."

"I'm sorry. I messed this up for us." Henry apologized. He wasn't sure why his wife was forgiving him instead of blaming him.

"It's going to be okay." She pushed back from him before sharing a kiss.

He explained the conversation in detail. They both realized it was about time they had a chat with Alison and called her downstairs and they sat down.

"You snuck off, again?" Elizabeth asked, giving her daughter a chance to explain.

"She invited me this time." Alison simply stated. She wasn't sure why her parents were making such a big deal out of it.

"I thought you had a problem with her." Henry asked confused, wondering why his daughter had suddenly changed her mind about her sister. He was glad she did, however he didn't understand why.

"We talked about it, besides my problem with you is bigger than her." Alison replied angrily.

"Problem with us?" Elizabeth was taken aback by this. She hadn't realized Alison was having these feelings.

"No one listens to me." Alison shouted, finally feeling like she could tell her parents how she really felt. She had always been afraid to act out but after she saw her dad with her sister, she knew she had to do something. "It's always felt like you guys weren't listening to me. Like I had to be troubled to get your attention but since day one she's been here, you guys only talk to and about her and I get that she didn't ask for that but that doesn't change the fact to you have three other kids."

Elizabeth sighed as she saw the dam break and Alison's emotions spilling. "Noodle, we never meant for you to feel like that."

"Jason has always been rebellious and Stevie dropped out of college; I feel like I never asked for much yet when I do I'm treated like this and I'm done with it."

Beth felt panic creep up on her. She couldn't lose another daughter. What if Alison left? She couldn't have a broken relationship with another child. She wouldn't be able to handle it, that she was sure of.

"Alison-" Henry started but she interrupted.

"No, I always get the perfect grades, I'm the perfect student and I'm involved in extra school activities but none of it matters. No matter what I do, I'm invisible. So, for the first time I skipped school and _that_ is when I get your attention."

"Alison, please." Elizabeth whispered, reminding herself to take deep breaths. Alison didn't notice her mother was slowly slipping into a panic attack and neither did Henry. He was too focused on his daughter.

"That's great parenting you guys." Alison left to go upstairs without another word. Henry watched her leave and sighed before turning to his wife. He now noticed how she was gripping her chest and having trouble breathing.

"Babe, look at me." He said as he guided her to the couch. "Breathe."

When she didn't calm down, he ran to the kitchen and got a brown paper bag. He had kept a few around the house just in case and it was a good thing he did. He handed it to her and held her as he reminded her to take slow breaths.

Elizabeth slowly started to calm down. Henry's arms were around her, reminding her she was safely at home. The panic started to fade slowly, and she dropped the bag while still laying in Henry's arms. Neither of them spokes as the minutes passed by and she regained her normal breathing pattern. The fighting and arguing had tired her out after a long day at work and she slowly drifted off to sleep.

 **TBC**


	10. Chapter 10: much needed break

**After a long wait, more of Lauren's backstory will be revealed soon (I know I said that before but this time I actually have an idea)**

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The phone rang five times before it was answered. "Lauren."

"It's Henry, please give me a minute before you hang up." He pleaded, and he waited for the sound that she hung up, but it never came.

"I wasn't planning on doing that."

"I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk to right now, but I need your help and I'm out of options." Henry told her, and he hoped she would be willing to help. He didn't mean to sound desperate.

"I've been wanting to talk to you as well." She replied, and it caught him off guard. He hadn't expected things to go this smoothly and he was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"I was hoping you'd want to meet. I'm already on my way to you, actually."

"Alright, before you take the exit towards campus, there's a roadside diner. Should I meet you there?" Hoping this way, they would manage to avoid the press.

"Yes, I can be there in about an hour."

"I'll see you then."

When he reached the diner, he found her already inside. "Hi." He said before slipping into the booth opposite of her.

"Hi."

"Can I get either of you anything?" The waitress interrupted them.

"Coffee would be great." Henry told her, and the waitress turned to Lauren.

"Tea please." The waitress left with their order and Henry stared at his daughter, not sure where to start.

"I'm sorry." She spoke, and he raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"You're sorry? I'm the one who should apologize."

"I can't imagine what's it's like for you with everything that happened."

"It's been tough but we're managing." Henry spoke as he wrapped his hands around the steaming cup of coffee that was placed on the table before removing them again.

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I wanted to apologize." Henry started, gazing into his daughter's eyes to make sure he had her attention. "I'm sorry about what I said."

"When you basically denied I'm your daughter?" Lauren asked, the words he spoke coming to her as she thought back of that moment.

"I didn't mean it." He tried to assure her. He needed her to know that he hadn't meant it and that he thought of her as his daughter.

"Yet you said it."

"I'm not looking to fight with you." A small silence fell in which neither of them said anything. "I miss my daughter and I can't remember the last time we talked. Truly talked."

"We never actually talked. It was you pushing my boundaries and ignoring every limit I set." Lauren shot back, and Henry wondered why it had gone so well in the beginning of the conversation, yet he was fighting with his daughter again.

"And I'm- we are sorry about that. From now on we will listen to you."

"Just forget it. What did you come here to talk about or was that it?" Henry looked down after her comment and felt her eyes stare at him. "You came here because you need something."

"I'm out of options." Henry said in defeat and Lauren let out a mocking laugh.

"You _just_ said you would listen and respect my limits and now you're here doing the complete opposite?"

"Please just hear me out. If not for me, for Elizabeth." Henry pleaded, and it seemed to grab her attention.

"What about her, is she alright?"

"Not really." Henry said, and Lauren looked at him worried. "She's been having really bad panic attacks and anxiety." Henry told her, and Lauren nodded.

"Has she gone to see someone?" She asked, trying to fit everything together.

"No. She keeps telling me she's fine, but she isn't, I know she isn't. I think she might have PTSD, but she won't talk about what happened. She needs to open up or this will eat her alive." Henry told her, and Lauren nodded, understanding what he had said but still not sure why he was here. "My plan was to call her assistant Blake and clear her schedule for the weekend. I want to take her and the kids somewhere away from the city, we have a farm and she loves it there. I know I have no right to ask you this, but I was wondering if you wanted to come with us and talk to her. Maybe she'll open up to you and I know that's a lot to ask but I'm out of options." Henry said, clearly feeling hopeless. Lauren thought for a moment.

"This weekend?" She asked, and he nodded. "Okay but I'm not staying overnight."

"I'll take it." Henry said, happy she was willing to help. "I hate putting you in this position."

"If you think I'm the one she'll open up to; I'll help but just to be clear I'm doing this for her." Lauren took a deep breath. Her silence was revealing, and Henry realized what he had just done. He knew his daughter needed time and space, yet they pushed her anyways.

For a moment she simply stared in silence at something in the distance. "I'm really sorry but I have to get to class." Henry quickly got up.

"I'll let you know what the details are." Lauren nodded before walking past him and out the door.

Henry called Blake on his way back to DC. "Hey Blake, it's Henry."

"Dr. McCord what can I do for you?" Blake said.

"I need a favor. I want you to clear Elizabeth's schedule for this weekend without her knowing."

"Sir?" Blake asked, and Henry knew he felt conflicted.

"I know she's your boss, but you know what she went through. She's not okay and she needs to be with family." Henry tried to convince him.

"Alright but please talk her out of firing me when the time comes." Blake agreed, and Henry let out a laugh.

"Don't worry, she won't fire you and Blake?" Henry started.

"Yeah?" Blake's voice sounded.

"Thank you." Henry said before hanging up.

He felt bad for guilting her into this, but they needed it, she needed it.

Saturday morning, they all left to go to the farm. It was a quiet drive and Henry held onto her hand the entire time. He really hoped she wouldn't be mad at him.

When they finally got there, he told the kids to go inside while Henry took Elizabeth aside for a moment. Lauren had parked the car a bit out of sight and Elizabeth hadn't noticed yet.

"Babe, we're all worried about you. You're not fine and we all wish there was a way we could help you." Henry started but Elizabeth interrupted.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me." Elizabeth told him, she forced a smile before walking towards the house. He sighed before following her.

"You need to talk to someone and if you won't talk to me..." He trailed off and Elizabeth turned around, anger clearly visible in her eyes.

"Who's inside?" Elizabeth asked calm, trying to keep her anger to a minimum. When Henry didn't answer she opened the door to find all four kids inside.

"Henry!" She slightly shouted as she turned around. He didn't know what to say so she continued.

"You use our kids to guilt me into coming here and then you what? Told our daughter to come here and play therapist?" Elizabeth said angrily. Henry knew these were emotions from what happened, and he was glad she was letting them out, he just didn't want them to affect the kids.

"If you want to blame someone, blame me. This was my idea." Henry told her, hoping she would direct her anger at him. He could take it but from the looks of it, their kids couldn't. Alison started to silently cry while Stevie held her. Jason and Lauren just stayed silent.

"Oh, I do! You could have just come to me."

"I did! but you refused to talk to me." Henry said, starting to get frustrated.

"Because I can't process for five minutes? You really expect everything to be back to normal after this weekend? I almost _died_ , Henry."

"Elizabeth!" He'd had enough, and he watched their kids. She followed his eyes and noticed Alison sobbing, Stevie was hugging her and was crying as well. Jason had his arms around his sister protectively while Lauren rubbed Alison's back with one hand. Elizabeth got tears in her eyes before walking out.

"Babe-" Henry said, wanting to go after her.

"Wait! I'll go." Lauren said, putting her jacket back on. "It's why you brought me here." she said with a slightly annoyed tone before walking out and she looked around to find Elizabeth. She caught a glimpse of blonde hair going around the corner of the barn and she ran towards it.

She found Elizabeth walking towards the fields and she quickly caught up with her.

"Wait." She yelled but she didn't wait so Lauren picked up her pace and not soon after she grabbed Elizabeth's arm. She noticed tears on the older woman's face, but she knew this was the time to get her to talk. Otherwise she might keep it in forever.

"Why?" She simply asked. Elizabeth wiped her tears away and looked confused. "Why did you run away just now?"

"Because I hurt everyone around me." Elizabeth told her.

"Why?" Lauren asked, not sure what she was doing but if it was working she would try to keep her talking.

"I say all the wrong things." Elizabeth admitted before she started walking again and Lauren followed.

"What do you feel right now?"

"I don't know." Elizabeth said but one look at her daughter's face and she realized she would have to do better than that. She feared she would ask her about what happened. Before the incident should would have been able to control her emotions but now she felt so raw and exposed that she was certain she was going to break if she answered.

"I feel nothing." Elizabeth sighed.

"What about back in the house?"

"I felt angry, hurt but also relieved." Elizabeth explained.

"Why relieved?"

"Because- because I could be angry at something, at someone."

"And you've felt this anger since Iran?" Lauren asked, and she noticed the flashbacks flooding into Elizabeth's mind. The woman started to panic, and Lauren realized something was wrong. Elizabeth grabbed a nearby tree to keep herself steady.

"I can't- I can't do this." Elizabeth said panicked.

"Yes, you can. You've been through so much and you are strong and fearless. Talk to me what is going through your mind right now?" Lauren asked, keeping a careful eye on the woman for any signs of distress.

"I couldn't save them, the screaming, the ringing, the blast." Elizabeth said between tears before her eyes grew wide.

"Breathe." Lauren said, realizing she was having a full-blown panic attack. "Look at me!" She said, raising her voice a bit so Elizabeth would hear her.

"In."

"Out."

"In."

"Out." Elizabeth started to slowly calm down. She took her mother's head between her hands and stared into her eyes.

"This." She said, waiting a second to make sure she was listening. "Is what happening when you don't talk about it. They love you and they only want to help. Let them. You don't have to do everything yourself. Show your kids it's okay to feel things and ask help when needed." Lauren told her before pulling her in a hug. They stayed like that until Elizabeth was completely calm again.

"Are you ready to head back?" Lauren asked, and Elizabeth slowly nodded.

"I screwed up." Elizabeth sighed.

"No, they know you're not back to your old self."

"I mean with you." Elizabeth said as they took a longer route back to the house. "I screwed up as a mom with all my kids."

"No, you didn't. You have two amazing daughters whom you taught to be strong and fierce. You've got a son who adores you and looks up to you. And then you have one more, slightly awkward, daughter who you've cared for so much and been so patient with." Lauren told her, and Elizabeth smiled

"I'm sorry about what I said earlier in the house. I'm really glad you're here." Elizabeth said, and Lauren nodded.

"No problem." Lauren said. Elizabeth noticed the lack of enthusiasm and realized how much they'd pushed their daughter in the last few months. She'd want to take things slow but instead they rushed her into things.

"How are things with you and your da- Henry?"

"It's a work in progress."

She watched her daughter from the corner of her eye as they walked back in silence. There was a lot they needed to talk about, but she told herself that from now on they would actually listen to their daughter.

Elizabeth sighed as she realized how much she had missed out on. The girl next to her was fully grown up, yet she hadn't been there for a single thing.

"I missed out on so much of your life." She didn't mean to speak it out loud, but she had so she waited for a reaction.

"I know." Came the simple, sympathetic reply from the youngest of the pair. Elizabeth sensed she didn't really want to talk about it, so she let it go, for now. For some reason her daughter was keeping a distance and she understood it would take time to build a relationship, but this was different. She decided she would talk to Henry about it and maybe he would know what it was about.

Henry.

She'd completely messed up. She had promised herself she wouldn't take her feeling out on him and instead she did the complete opposite.

She took her anger out on him and the kids and she would have to do a whole lot better than 'I'm fine' now to win them back.

They reached the house and hesitantly Elizabeth walked inside, followed by Lauren. They found the rest of the family on the couch with each a cup of tea or hot coco.

Henry shared a look with Lauren before hugging his wife. Elizabeth kept her tears at bay although she wanted nothing more than to bawl her eyes out safely in Henry's arms. However, she couldn't do that to the kids. Not here anyways.

"I'm sorry about earlier." She apologized to her kids as she went around to give each of them a kiss placed somewhere on top of their head.

"We're just worried about you." Stevie told her before she sat down on the couch.

"I know, and I know I haven't been myself lately, but I promise I-" Elizabeth stated before taking a short pause. She looked from Henry to Lauren before letting out a sigh. She knew what she needed to do but that didn't mean she liked it. "I'm going to get help, I'll talk to someone and I'll be back to being me in no time." Elizabeth told them and they all smiled. Henry gave Lauren a grateful look as he mouthed thank you.

 **TBC**


	11. Chapter 11: Forgiveness

**Okay, so, I had this (and three other chapters) pre-written. Meaning I could post a bit more frequently but when I copy pasted it to ffn, this is how it turned out:**

 **p class="MsoNormal"theyspan lang="EN-US" spendstyle="mso-theansi-language:entireEN-US;day.**

 **So, after a some editing, I managed to clear one chapter for you. Enjoy!**

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They spent the entire day around the house. Alison showed Lauren around while Henry fixed a few things around the house. Elizabeth, Stevie and Jason were caught in a board game until lunch. They all sat down to eat together while Stevie informed her dad on how badly her mom was losing the

"So, what are your plans for this afternoon?" Henry asked the other two girls at the table.

"It's supposed to rain this afternoon, so I think stay inside." Alison explained, and Lauren just nodded along.

"How about a movie?" Jason suggested, and everyone agreed.

"They finished eating and Alison prepared the movie while Henry got drinks

"Do you need help?" Lauren asked as she walked into the kitchen. She felt a bit out of place and useless sitting on the couch, waiting for the movie to start.

"Sure. If you want, you can take those three glasses to the table." Henry asked, and she did. She was followed by Henry who brought the rest along.

They watched the movie together, but everyone felt the hint of uncomfortableness in the room. Both parents focused on the movie but by the time they reached the end, Elizabeth started to think.

"It wasn't really her type of movie, but he was glad she got to spend time with her family. It was an action movie with some romance thrown in. The plot went completely past her until a few words caught her attention. The girl in the movie told spoke three words that got her thinking. 'I forgive you' and she started to wonder if their daughter had forgiven them.

She couldn't even begin to imagine what kind of a rollercoaster ride it must have been like, and still is, for her. Finding all of this out, your life having been some sort of a lie.

She wondered if her daughter ever feared growing up that her birth parents didn't want her. Not feeling like she belonged anywhere. Being an outsider and not being accepted.

No mother ever wants their children to grow up thinking that. Thinking that they're not good enough or not worth loving because Elizabeth did love her kids, all four of them.

She had missed the end of the movie because she was pulled out of her thoughts by Henry who was gently shaking her. She smiled up at him and could see he was having the same thoughts she had.

"That ending sucked." Jason stated and looked at the others.

"Then you pick the movie next time." Alison argued.

"Let's watch another one." Stevie interrupted.

"I'm going to get another drink." Elizabeth said quickly, and Henry followed her to the kitchen.

"Babe, are you okay?" He asked, hoping to get as honest answer for once.

"Do you think she forgave us?" She asked, her back towards Henry. He took a step forward and put his arms around her from behind. He felt her lean against his chest as he placed a kiss on the back of her head.

"I don't know." He sighed. "but I think it's about time we have a conversation with her one of these days."

"I want to give her space." she turned around in his arms, resting her head I his chest. The sound of his heartbeat calming her down. "but I also need to know where we are at."

"Me too."

"I just want a break, for one moment." I just want us back. You, me and our four kids. No memories of Iran, no daughter who thinks of us as strangers, no daughter who thinks we don't listen to her. I just want to be a family

"I know. I want that too." He kissed the top of her head.

"I feel like I'm doing the worst parenting job." She sighed, and he pushed her back, so he could look her in the eyes.

"You're a good mom. You're a good wife and a good friend." He tried to make sure she heard him.

A smile lingered on Elizabeth's lips. "I noticed you didn't say cook."

"Three out of four babe, that's not bad." He heard her laugh again, truly laugh and it sounded like the most beautiful thing he'd heard in a while. She wasn't back to her old self yet, but it was a step in the right direction.

"By the time they had finished dinner, it was pretty late, and Lauren figured she should head back.

"Wait you're not staying?" Alison asked disappointed, looking from her sister to her parents.

"No, I'm sorry."

"Why not?" Lauren thought for a moment, looking at Henry and Elizabeth for help. The reason she wasn't staying was because she simply didn't want to. Things were going way too fast for her liking, but she knew telling Alison that would hurt her feelings.

"You have exams on Monday, right?" Henry asked, and Lauren smiled at him thankfully.

"Oh, well good luck. Next time you'll stay over." Alison said, giving her sister a hug goodbye.

"Drive safe." Stevie said before hugging her quickly.

"Bye Jason." She said as she waved at him. He mumbled a quick bye and waved back.

"Henry and Elizabeth walked with her to the car.

"Thanks for inviting me." Lauren said. Henry stepped forwards and hugged her which she accepted because the past few days hadn't been easy on him. It still felt awkward hugging her newly found parents, but it also felt right, in a way.

"Thank you for coming." Henry whispered, enjoying the hug before pulling back. Lauren was surprised to find tears in Elizabeth's eyes, so she quickly hugged her.

"I want you to know that I- we love you." She whispered in her daughter's ear. She knew her daughter might not be ready to say it back, but she needed her to know.

"I know." Lauren told her, not ready to say it back yet. She got into her car and drove off. She kind of wished she hadn't told Henry she would only be staying one day because she really enjoyed today. However, she didn't want to invite herself for another day, so she left.

It surprised her how much she was starting to enjoy her time with them. She hadn't expected things to go this well, but she also knew she would have to go back to her home country once she was done studying. She knew from experience that goodbyes were hard and kept herself at arm's length from people. She had tried to do that with Elizabeth and Henry, but she slowly started to get attached to them and it scared her.

Elizabeth couldn't sleep so she decided to head downstairs. She was glad Henry hadn't woken up and she finally had some time for herself to think.

"What are you doing up?" Elizabeth asked as she noticed Jason walk into the kitchen.

"Couldn't sleep. What about you?"

"Me neither." Elizabeth said as she filled a glass with water, placing it in front of her son.

"Are you having nightmares?" He asked carefully.

"Jason." His mom sighed his name, something he'd come to realize both his parents did when they thought he couldn't handle something.

"Look, I'm not a child."

"To me you are." She answered with a soft smile. "no matter how old you are or how big you get, you will always be my little boy. I will always try to protect you whenever I can."

"I want to be there for you. I want to help you get better." Jason told her "like I couldn't before."

Elizabeth knew he hadn't known she was in Iran until the morning she came home. She shook her head almost desperately, eyes shot open wide with something that looked to him like panic as she reached out for his hand. "No! No."

"Mom." He protested, looking at the tight grip she has on his hand. It's so strong and tight, and it scared him more than he might like to admit because she looked scared. He searched his mind, yet he couldn't remember a time where he had seen his mother like this. Angry, frustrated and sad, but not scared.

"It's not your place to be there for me. It was my place as your mother to protect you and take care of you. Instead, I made you worry about me and for that I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, I just wish there was something I could do to help."

"You're already helping. By being patient with me and just being here."

She hugged her son tightly. He'd grown up so fast, as if ever time she blinked he was a year older. He was getting tall like his dad, but she also saw a lot of things from herself in him.

"I wanted to ask you something." She said, not ready to let go of him just yet. "With everything that was going on I haven't had the time to ask you but are you okay with Lauren and her being here?"

'Sure." He replied, the lack of enthusiasm clearly audible. Elizabeth pushed back from her son to look him in the eye.

"You have a say in this." She told him, hoping he would be honest with her.

"I'm happy for you and dad." Jason said but Elizabeth pushed for more.

"That's not what I asked."

"It takes some getting used to be she seems nice." He told her, and she was thankful for the honest answer.

"I don't ever want you to feel like we're placing you or one of your sisters." Elizabeth promised him, and he nodded. After a while Jason broke the silence.

"What do you think of her?" He wanted to know what his mother thought about her daughter.

"I'm forever grateful that she came back to us. I want nothing more than to just take her in and make up for lost time, but I know that's not how this works. She needs time and your dad, and I will give it to her. Sometimes I just feel like we lost our shot at being her parents." Elizabeth sighed, and Jason guided her to the couch to sit down.

"It's never too late to be her parents." Jason told her, and she brushed her hand through his hair.

"I remember your first words, Ali's first steps and Stevie's first day at school. I remember all your firsts but with her- I'll never watch her learn how to walk or drive, I'll never get to pick out her prom dress with her or even hear her call me 'mom'." Elizabeth admitted as she blinked back the tears. She didn't want to cry. She was so done with crying, but she couldn't help it.

Jason made a mental note of the statement his mom just made and decided to talk to his sisters in the morning.

"You might have missed the first years but there are so many years to come. She's here and willing to have a relationship with you. Who knows? Maybe she'll call you mom in the future but right now, you have a chance at being her mother. From the looks of it today, she really enjoyed her time. This might not be the ideal situation but we've all got your back, and dad's too. Whatever we can do to help." Jason told her, and she rested her head against his.

"I love you."

"I love you too, mom." Jason said before getting. "I'm going to bed and you should too." He grabbed his mother's hand and helped her up before taking her upstairs.

 **TBV**


	12. Chapter 12: Sleepover

**IMPORTANT: Are there any story lines from the show you want me to put into this story?**

 **Law school exams are coming up, so... Sorry for the shorter chapter.**

* * *

The following morning, Henry and Elizabeth decided to go for a walk and Jason took his chance to speak to his sisters.

"Okay so, I talked to mom last night." Jason started, grabbing his sister's attention. "and she's really sad that she wasn't there for any of Lauren's firsts." he explained, and he realized it was the first time he had spoken his sister's name out loud.

"So?" Alison asked, curious what his brother had to say.

"What if we create new firsts for them. Lauren will have to be on board of course but we could do a day where they can just catch up for lost time." Jason said and noticed Alison getting excited.

"Yes!" Alison said, ideas already flowing into her mind already.

"I'm in." Stevie laughed. "great idea." Jason couldn't help but smile proudly.

"We should make a list of firsts." Alison said but Jason stopped her.

"We should first ask if Lauren wants this." He said, and Alison nodded.

'Also, mom and dad need to be unaware." Stevie said and they all nodded in agreement.

"Should I text her?" Alison asked, and Stevie walked over to her to read what she was going to type.

 _Hi, this is Alison. We had a surprise in mind for mom and dad, but only if you're okay with it. Mom mentioned how she missed out on all your first's and we thought maybe we could create new firsts. Like the first sightseeing trip, first selfie, first 'family photo' or first road trip. We could make a list and try to find a day to do them on. Let us know what you think. xoxo Stevie, Jason Ali._

She pressed send and they continued eating breakfast, waiting for a reply.

During the kids their secret planning, Henry and Elizabeth had taken the time to go for a walk.

"How are you feeling?" Henry asked. He was holding his wife's hand as they walked away from the farm.

"Better." She replied, for once honest because she did feel better. "I'm sorry, Henry." She sighed as she walked closer to her husband, enjoying the comfort of his presence.

"For what?" he asked, genuinely confused why she was the one apologizing.

"I've been a mess to be around, not letting you in or talking to you. I- I just wasn't ready."

"But you are now?"

"Yes." She promised him as they continued their walk. She finally let everything out, the absolute horror she went through. Between the tears and the occasionally panic, she managed to tell him everything.

She realized then and there why she fell in love with the man. He was caring, loving and supportive. He listened well yet said the right things at the right moments. He was everything she could dream of and more.

She wasn't even listening to what he was saying anymore, just lost in his eyes when she suddenly pressed her lips against his. At first, he was surprised by the action, but soon realized that this is what she wanted, what she needed.

"I love you." She whispered.

"I love you." He promised her, and they returned to the farm.

That night Alison finally got a reply but couldn't show her siblings yet since they were with their parents.

 _Hey, I think that would be lovely for your parents. I'm in. Did you have a date in mind? Lauren_

"No phones at the table." Henry said as he grabbed Alison's phone from her hands.

"Dad!" She said, not wanting him to see what was on it. Henry gave her a confused look but handed the phone back and Alison locked it before putting it away.

That night Alison showed the others the text.

"She's in." Jason said excited.

"Now what?" Alison asked as she typed a reply.

 _Hi, great! Not yet but we'll make a list tonight and send it to you? That way you can add things if you'd like. xoxo S, J A_

Alison pressed send and this time it didn't take long before she received a reply.

 _Sounds good._

"We all think of things tonight and just text them to me and I'll make a list." Alison said and the other two agreed. At the end of the night they had created the list and sent it.

 _Hi, sounds good. I have another idea. There's a Dutch restaurant in DC, so we could go there for lunch or something?_

About a week later, Alison, Stevie and Jason had invited Lauren over for dinner. They would tell their parents their plan and tonight would be another first because Lauren had agreed to a sleepover. They just hoped their mom would make it home tonight since she had been working late a lot.

Their phone rang and before Henry could answer it, Stevie picked up.

"Yes, it's fine." She said, and Henry looked at her, eager to find out who was calling.

"Can you open the door? I need to finish dinner." Stevie asked after she hung up. She watched her dad walk to the door confused.

When Henry got there, he was met by a familiar blonde. "Hi." he said excited. "I didn't know you were coming."

Lauren stepped forward to give him a hug. "Your kids wanted it to be a surprise." She smiled as they walked to the kitchen together. Alison and Stevie gave her a welcome hug, followed by Jason. It felt awkward as their first hug, but she was glad her brother was starting to feel more comfortable around her.

"I'm home." Elizabeth's voice sounded through the house, followed by the clicking noise of heels. "That smells good." She told Stevie, kissing her husband.

She hadn't noticed the one extra person in the room until she spoke.

"Hi." Lauren greeted her, and Elizabeth turned around, stunned.

"Hi, you're here." She said happily before hugging her. She felt like after last weekend, she'd screwed up her chances with her daughter. Having a mental breakdown was not something you wanted your daughter to see and she was sure the girl had changed her mind about being in contact with them. Especially since she hadn't heard from her all week.

"Surprise." Lauren laughed, for a moment forgetting she was trying not to get too attached to the family and enjoying her time.

She knew she had to go back to her home country, but she was starting to like it here. There was nothing waiting for her back home, but she was also scared this wasn't going to last. The only reason for her to stay here was her family-

She stopped her thoughts for a moment. She realized she had just referred to the people around her as her family.

She never really had a family except for her adoptive parents. She knew her adoptive parents had bought her because they were denied adoption. She had found out trying to find her birth parents, but she wondered if they had known she was taken from her parents. Not some orphan left somewhere but taken from the people who wanted to raise her as their own.

"You alright?" Henry asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Hmm?" she asked, looking around to find everyone staring at her. "I'm fine." She said but none of them seemed convinced. "I was just thinking." She explained, and Jason decided to talk about something else, clearly noticing his sister's discomfort.

"Let's eat." He suggested, and everyone sat down.

"After everything that happened the last couple of weeks, we figured you could use this." Stevie explained.

"This is really good." Henry told Stevie as he took another bite.

"Thanks dad." Stevie said, and Alison started to tell her parents about her day at school.

"You made dinner, so we'll clean up." Henry said, and all four kids went to the living room.

"Did you know?" Elizabeth turned around as soon as the kids left the room, a big smile lingering on her lips.

"No." Henry laughed at how excited his wife was.

"I thought I had screwed up after last weekend." Elizabeth sighed as Henry pulled her into his arms.

"You didn't." He told her, hoping the embrace would comfort her.

"We should get to know each other better." Alison said, wanting to know everything about her sister.

"Okay." Lauren said, curious as to what Alison had in mind.

"How about we ask each other questions?" Alison said and they all agreed.

"Okay, I'll start." Alison said, thinking about what to ask first for a moment. "Do you have a second name?"

"Yes. My full name is Lauren Marije van Dam." Lauren told them. "My parents used to call me Marije, but I liked Lauren better so when I came here I just used that name. Plus, it was easier for people here to pronounce."

"I love your name, it sounds so pretty and mysterious since it's not English." Stevie laughed.

"Okay my turn." Lauren said. "Favorite thing to do in your spare time."

"Gaming." Jason replied, not even needing to think about it.

"Reading." Stevie answered next.

"I like drawing and designing." Alison told her.

"Favorite subject in school?" Stevie asked, and Lauren thought for a while.

"I guess from my entire school career I'd have to say Dutch, but I also enjoyed social psychology."

"I keep forgetting English isn't your first language." Jason said, and Lauren smiled. This was probably the most he'd said to her.

"Yes, your English is really good." Stevie joined in.

"Thanks, we get English lessons from grade 8." Lauren started before realizing her mistake. "but our education system is different, so let's just say from age 10."

"It's so cool you speak two languages. We have Spanish, but I don't remember anything." Alison said.

"We also have German and French although my German is way better than my French." Lauren laughed.

"Can you teach us some Dutch?" Alison asked.

"Sure, what do you want to know?" Lauren asked but before Alison could reply, her parents walked in.

"Movie night? Are you staying over?" Elizabeth asked, trying to contain her excitement.

"If that's alright with you guys?" Lauren said, noticing how Elizabeth's face lit up. It amazed her how such a small gesture could make the woman so intensely happy.

"I'll get some drinks." Elizabeth said, turning around and walking to the kitchen. Lauren got up and walked after her.

"I'll help." She said, and the rest made themselves comfortable on the couch.

"Are we okay?" Lauren asked, and Elizabeth turned around confused.

"I have been wanting to ask you the same thing." Elizabeth replied. Henry and she had noticed the girl had been keeping her distance no matter how hard they tried. "I feel like something is bothering you, but I have no idea what."

"Don't worry about me." Lauren told her, "I'm just worried about you. So much has happened."

"I'm fine." Elizabeth assured her.

"Are you sure? I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk to about this but- "Lauren started but Elizabeth stopped her.

"Stop." She said gentle, placing her hands on her daughter's shoulders. "I'm okay. I promise." She smiled, and Lauren nodded. She still felt like something was going on, but she figured Elizabeth just didn't want to tell her.

 **TBC**


	13. Chapter 13: morning after

Elizabeth hadn't been able to sleep. She kept wishing it was the morning, so she could have breakfast with her entire family. This resulted in her twisting and turning all night long, unable to fall asleep. Around six, she decided to just get up and get ready for the day.

Both Jason and Alison had joined her before leaving to go to school. Twenty minutes later, Lauren walked downstairs dressed in a light grey shirt which was tucked into her jeans.

"Good morning. Do you want some breakfast?" Elizabeth asked. She'd told her staff she would come in late this morning, not telling them the real reason. She hoped she got a chance to talk to her daughter– with Henry.

"Good morning." Lauren said, "Sure. Where is everyone?"

"Henry is getting dressed. Stevie has the day off, so she'll probably be asleep till lunch time and Jason and Ali left for school already." Elizabeth explained before handing her daughter a cup of tea. "What do you like for breakfast?" She ignored the guilt she felt for not knowing small things like this. She was her mother, she should know these things, yet she didn't because she never got the chance to make breakfast for her daughter before. Lauren seemed to notice this and tried to reassure her.

"I like almost everything." She said gentle and Elizabeth smiled, wondering when she'd become such an open book. Or maybe it was just her daughter that could read her so well.

"I'm known to make a mean breakfast omelet." Elizabeth smiled sadly, not being able to shake off the saddening feeling yet.

"Bring it on." Lauren laughed, and Elizabeth went to work, occasionally glancing to her side as she watched her daughter sip her tea. The girl was staring at a point in the distance only she seemed to be able to see and Elizabeth wondered what she was thinking about.

Both their thought was interrupted as Henry walked downstairs.

"Good morning." He said cheerfully. He kissed his wife before joining Lauren at the coffee table. "You're making her your breakfast omelet?" Henry asked in disbelieve and Elizabeth smiled while she nodded. Henry turned to his daughter.

"Remember this moment and cherish it." He joked, and Lauren gave him a questionable look. "She only does this on special occasions and I promise you, it will be the best thing you've ever eaten."

"Henry is good at exaggerating." Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but Lauren was curious as to how it tasted.

"I've had yours before so let's see who's the better cook." Lauren teased, referring to the first time she met Henry.

"There really is no competition there." Henry said, and Elizabeth handed her daughter a plate before joining the pair at the table. Henry started to eat, and Lauren took her first bite.

"This is really good." She said, and Elizabeth smiled proudly.

"Told you, no competition." Henry laughed and took a sip of his coffee. He suddenly realized this wasn't a regular thing, yet it felt so normal. It felt like their daughter was sitting at their kitchen table, having breakfast every morning but she wasn't.

"So," Elizabeth started, hoping her statement wouldn't bring an end to this happy, joyful moment. "We were wondering if maybe we could talk."

"About?" Lauren asked, not fully understanding the vague question the older woman asked.

"You, your life. Us." Elizabeth said, and Lauren thought for a moment. She didn't want to share everything with them, not yet anyways. However, she did feel like she owed it to them to give them at least some answers.

"Sure." She said, continuing eating as she waited for them to ask the first question.

"What's your current _situation_ in The Netherlands?" Elizabeth asked, not sure how to correctly formulate the question.

"I thought you had a file on me?" Lauren asked, wondering why they didn't know this yet.

"We do but like I said the first time we met, we didn't read everything. We read enough to know you're our daughter but the rest we wanted to hear from you. When you are ready." Henry told her.

"Right. Well, I grew up in the northern part of the country in a small village. From my birth certificate you know I was raised by Alana and Tom van Dam. They died when I was seven." She wasn't sure what they wanted to hear and what they already knew.

"What happened after that?" Elizabeth carefully asked as if she had put deep consideration into every word she spoke, not wanting to say the wrong things.

"The foster system happened." Lauren explained, noticing as she continued talking the sadness in her parents their eyes became worse.

"What about growing up?" Elizabeth asked while Lauren finished the last piece of her omelet and wrapped her hands around the warm cup of tea.

"I spent time in a few different foster homes if that's what you mean?" Lauren said, not understanding what she was asking.

"Can I just have asked one more thing?" Elizabeth asked, and Lauren nodded. "Were you happy growing up?

Sure, things could have been better, but she didn't want to make her parents feel guiltier. "Yeah, I was." She told them. "I am." She corrected because she was happy. Being here with the made her feel wanted and cherished.

"I was brought up with love. A roof over my head, always food on the table and my parents made sure I was happy." Lauren said, and she noticed a small winch from Elizabeth when she called her adoptive parents her parents. "I'm sorry." She apologized as she realized what she did.

"Don't be. I just wish that we could have been there from the start." Elizabeth sighed, and Henry got her hand, giving it a gentle and supportive squeeze. He felt the same way.

"I know, but you're here now." Lauren said, trying to be optimistic and hoping it would cheer her up a bit.

"It's just- the fact that they took you from us is one thing but hearing you speak good things about them- it just doesn't feel fair. I know they raised you but still." Elizabeth admitted, closing her eyes for a second. She was so angry with the people who robbed her of a chance at raising her daughter.

"Don't get me wrong, I will never forgive them for what they did, but that doesn't change the fact that they raised me. I grew up loved and wanted when I thought I wasn't. I was always told you guys didn't want anything to do with me and I know now that's not true but growing up I didn't." Lauren explained, and tears welled up in Elizabeth's eyes. She never wanted any of her kids to feel unwanted or unloved. Henry noticed this and rubbed the back of her hand. He knew what his wife was feeling, and he shared it.

"So, you knew growing up you were adopted?" Henry asked.

"I knew when I was six years old."

"And your foster family? What were they like?"

"No everyone is fit to be parents."

"Did they hurt you?" He asked, scared of the answer. The hesitation from his daughter felt like confirmation and it made him furious. He hadn't been able to protect her when she was born and now he found this out. Lauren noticed him fighting his inner demons and decided to ease his worry.

"They didn't." She told him, but Henry wasn't sure if he should believe her or not. He felt like this was her way of protecting them from her past.

"How long did you stay with them?" Elizabeth asked. She'd heard bad stories of foster homes before and she wanted to know her daughter's experience with them.

"How many foster homes have you been in?" Henry asked, his anger still present but he tried to ignore it for now.

I don't really feel like talking about it, I'm sorry." Lauren told them, and she felt the mood dampen. "Now, enough about me." She smiled, knowing if they kept talking, it wouldn't improve the mood. "I want to know more about you two. Do you have any brothers or sisters?" She was curious to find out if she had aunt, uncles or grand parents.

"I have a brother, Will." Elizabeth told her, "My parents- your grand parents- passed away when I was younger."

"I have a one brother and two sisters. My mom passed a few years ago but my dad is still alive." Henry told her. He was about to explain that they didn't see them that often when Elizabeth's phone rang. She sighed before getting up and answering it.

"How is she?" Lauren asked Henry and he smiled at the genuine worry.

"She's good." Henry told her. Elizabeth had the occasional nightmare, but she didn't need to know. He felt like it was alright to protect her from that.

"I'm glad to hear that." Lauren told him.

"I know we pushed you earlier. You said you needed time and we may have forced you into things." Henry apologized.

"I wouldn't have been there if I didn't want to." Lauren assured him and was interrupted by Elizabeth walking back into the room. She sat back down and they both took it as a sign she wasn't leaving yet so Lauren continued. "I'm glad you guys threw me in the deep because I might never have done it. I like being here, you two are fantastic and you have amazing kids." A slight blush crept up on her as she spoke.

"We love having you here." Henry replied, and Elizabeth nodded.

"I'm really sorry, but I have to head to the office." Elizabeth spoke sadly.

"Yeah of course."

"I hope we can do this again some time?" Elizabeth asked, and Lauren got up, followed by Henry.

"Me too." She quickly put her arms around her mother who accepted it gladly. Every time they hugged, she would cherish the moment as if it was the last time she would hug her daughter.

She hurried out the door after saying goodbye to Henry and they were met by Stevie who had finally woken up. Henry decided to let the two sisters have a moment while he got some work done in his office.

Elizabeth was having a long and exhausting day at work. Her mind kept wandering to last night when her kids told her about a plan they has. She remembered telling Jason how she missed out on all of Lauren's firsts and now they want to make it a day were they do all kinds of things for the first time.

"That was a New York Times reporter who just got off the phone with Tyler and Ethan Cole's parents." Jay started, and Elizabeth listened as she wondered what would come next.

"The times got the Coles to make a statement?"

"No, the times got them to give a two-hour interview."

"What did you say?"

"I said no comment. Now I'm going to call Robert Cole and say a lot of things at an elevated level." Jay was feeling very agitaded and didn't hide it from his boss.

"But when are they going to run it?"

"Tomorrow."

"Buried in the back?" Elizabeth hoped for a miracle.

"Depends on how big of a news day it is."

"So, unless we can get a major story out in the world before tomorrow, we're screwed." Daisy sighed, and Elizabeth suddenly got an idea.

"Blake can your clear my schedule for today?"

"Ma'am, I don't think it's a good idea to take the day off. We need to figure out a way to resolve this." Jay spoke, and Elizabeth got up with a smile.

"You guys make sure the boys get home. I will worry about the press. Daisy walk with me please."

"What's the plan, ma'am?"

"Your reporter friend, Linda, tell her I said thanks again and you've got a story for her.

"You want her to publish a story about the Coles?" Daisy asked confused.

"Not about the Coles. About the McCord's. Tell her to be at the Lincoln memorial in an hour and she might find herself a story." With that Elizabeth was out the door and called her daughter.

"Hi it's Lauren."

"Hi it's Elizabeth. Look are you still in DC?"

"I left your house about fifteen minutes ago, why?"

"Does your offer from last night still stand?" Elizabeth had told her daughter about their situation with the Cole last night without any details.

She just said if it got out they would need a story to cover it and Lauren had offered to go out with them. It would be the first time they would be seen in public and they were sure the media would be all over it.

"Of course, were should I meet you?"

"I'll pick you up from our house?"

"Alright, I'm turning around. I'll see you in a few."

Elizabeth rushed into the house and found Henry in the study.

"Get ready, we're going out." She said excited.

"Out?" He asked confused as he watch the storm that is his wife blow into the house.

"With Lauren." Henry shot up and together they walked upstairs. Elizabeth explained her plan and they both changed into a different outfit.

"Hello?" Lauren's voice echoed through the house. Elizabeth had made sure the agents in front of her house knew to let her in at all times.

"Coming." Elizabeth rushed down the stairs, careful not to trip over Jason's stuff. She made a mental note to remind him to clean it up.

"Ready?"

"Are you sure you want to do this? The press will be on us everywhere we go." Elizabeth wanted to make sure she was alright with it.

"Yes. We're going to do this some day anyways. Might as well be helping your case in the mean time." She promised her. Elizabeth had told her about the case. That someone terrible was going to happen to two kids unless they found a big story for the media. She didn't know the exact details, nor did she need to know.

"Are you both ready?" Henry asked, and Lauren nodded, taking out the elastic that held her ponytail in place. Her long blonde hair fell over her shoulders and she brushed her hand through it once.

"If my face is going to be in the paper tomorrow, I at least want to look good." She laughed before stepping out, followed by Henry and Elizabeth.

"So where do we start?" Lauren asked as they got into the car.

"Lincoln memorial." Elizabeth said, and her detail started driving. She was sitting in between Henry and her daughter.

"You said you had a brother; does he live near here?" Lauren asked her mother and she turned to her.

"He's a trauma surgeon, currently deployed in Iraq."

"How long has he been there for?" She was genuinely interested which earned a smile from the blonde next to her.

"A few months. He will return home soon."

"That's nice. Are you close with him?" Lauren asked and felt Elizabeth tense up. Before she could take her words back, her mother replied.

"Not as close as we used to be." The loss of their parents had driven a wedge between them.

"What about you, did you ever have a foster brother or sister?" Henry asked. He realized they still didn't know what her life was like in the Netherlands at the moment. She told them about her growing up but not if she lived with a foster family right now.

"Yeah, I had an adorable little brother when I was about eleven. He was the cutest." Lauren smiled as she thought back of them.

"Ma'am, we're here." One of the agents spoke and Elizabeth turned to her daughter.

"You can still say no." She promised her although she already knew the answer.

"Let's go." She smiled and opened the door, almost hitting the agent that wanted to open her door for her. She mumbled a quick apology, not being used to the agents yet.

 **TBC**


	14. Chapter 14: Day of firsts

**thanks for the good luck wishes, though I did fail the exam. However I managed to write a new chapter.**

* * *

"So, our religion professor over here could probably tell you all about this." Elizabeth said as they walked towards the memorial. She knew both father and daughter had a rocky relationship and she was hoping that would change after today.

"The Lincoln Memorial is an American national monument built to honor the 16th president Abraham Lincoln." Henry started, and Lauren listened with an interest.

"What about that one?" She asked as she pointed to the obelisk on the other side.

"That would be the Washington monument. It was built to commemorate George Washington." Henry told her more information about both monuments and Elizabeth spotted a reporter coming closer. She figured it was Daisy's friend, Linda, so she caught up with the pair to make sure they knew.

"Just so you know, the first pictures have been shot." She told them, and Lauren looked around, spotting the reporter not soon after.

"How do I look?" Lauren joked.

Elizabeth's hand brushed a few hairs behind her daughter's ear as she looked her in the eyes. "Beautiful as ever."

Lauren returned a smile before Henry continued his lecture about the history of the city. After a while Elizabeth cut in.

"Who's ready for some lunch?"

"Yeah about that." Lauren started and for a moment Elizabeth was worried she was going to tell them that she was leaving. "Since today is all about firsts, I thought maybe I could take you to a place really special."

"I'm intrigued." Henry said, and he was curious to hear what she had in mind.

"It's actually not far from here." Lauren told them as they walked back to the car. She showed the agent that was driving the address before getting in the car.

"So, do we get to know where we're going?" Elizabeth asked her, and she thought about it for a moment.

"Well, there's a Dutch restaurant in the city where they serve Dutch food. I thought maybe I could show you a part of where I grew up." Lauren started before adding, "Without actually being the Netherlands."

"I'd love that." Her mother replied, and they drove in silence until they reached the restaurant.

Henry saw the sign on the restaurant when they stopped. "How would this be pronounced?"

"De eetkamer. It basically means 'the dining room'." Lauren said before they stepped inside. They were met by a blonde woman who showed them to a booth and handed them a menu.

"So, what's good?" Henry asked as he read the menu. Everything was written in both Dutch and English.

"Do you trust me?" Lauren asked, excited she could show her parents this part of her life.

"Of course." Henry told her, and she got both menus from her parents. The waitress noticed and figured they were finished.

"Hi, what can I get you?" She asked, and Lauren named one of the things on the menu in Dutch. The woman replied in which both Henry and Elizabeth assumed was Dutch and their daughter continued to order in the, to them, forgein language. They both looked at their daughter awe.

When she was finished taking the order, the waitress turned to the couple and spoke in English again. "What can I get you to drink?"

"A water for me." Elizabeth told her.

"A coffee, please."

"Alright. I'll be back with your order." The waitress left, and Elizabeth waited for her daughter to explain but she never did.

"What exactly did you order?" She asked curious.

"A little bit of everything." Lauren started, "and if you end up not liking it, there's always a hotdog stand at the end of the street."

"It's so different hearing you speak Dutch." Henry told her.

"I don't get to do it that often so it's nice. There's nothing like this in Philly so I know where I'm going from now on whenever I visit you." All three smiled and the waitress interrupted by placing their drinks on the table.

"How do I say thank you?" Elizabeth asked, and Lauren smiled at the interest her mother was showing.

"Bedankt." Elizabeth tried to repeat it, causing Lauren to let out a laugh.

"That bad?" She asked.

"No, just weird hearing you try to speak Dutch." Lauren promised her.

They were once again interrupted by the waitress who placed the food on their tables before leaving the three to eat.

"We've got 'broodje kroket' which is a deep-fried meat ragout croquette on a softbun." Lauren started before explaining the rest. "These are 'bitterballen'. Basically, the same thing only smaller and round without the bread. Then we've got 'broodje bal' which is a sandwich with a meatball."

"What about these?" Elizabeth asked. As she pointed at the second plate of food.

"These are small sandwiches with different kinds of cheese since the Netherlands is known for its cheese. Then these are sandwiches with 'hageslag' which chocolate sprinkles."

Henry looked confused at all the food. He was always open to trying new things, so he picked up something. "What was this called again?"

"Bitterbal." Lauren replied as she watched Henry's reaction. It took a moment before her nodded his head in approval and Elizabeth followed his lead.

They ate while Lauren tried to teach her parents how to pronounce everything. They didn't even notice the press gathering outside, taking pictures.

When they were finished, Lauren wanted to know what they thought.

"It's very different from what we eat here but I liked it." Henry told her, and Elizabeth agreed. The waitress collected their plates and they remained seated.

"So, do you eat this every day?" Elizabeth asked, and she wondered what else was different in the country her daughter grew up in.

"Not everything all at once but yes. Most days it's just a sandwich with cheese but every now and then I eat something else." Lauren explained, and the waitress returned with the bill. Before Henry could get it, Lauren had already picked it up.

"My country, my treat." She told them, but Elizabeth protested.

"You don't have to."

"Please?" She wanted to do something nice for them and more importantly, she wanted to make sure she wasn't with them for their money.

A lot of articles about her had stated she was only trying to connect with her parents for their money. Henry had told her they didn't believe what the media wrote but she still didn't want them to think that.

After she paid, the waitress returned with a small bag and handed it to Lauren before they said goodbye. Elizabeth was curious to know what was inside but didn't want to seem invasive.

"What's next?" Henry asked, and Lauren shrugged her shoulders. Elizabeth got out her phone and scrolled through her messages. Alison had sent her a list of things they could do as 'firsts'.

"Why is bike riding on here?" Elizabeth laughed and look at father and daughter for clarification.

"Because the Netherlands is famous for its bikes" Lauren explained.

"Most things are inside activities, but we could go to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial?"

Henry explained the history of the city in detail to his daughter and Elizabeth looked at the pair with a smile lingering her lips.

It warmed her heart to see the two get along and she was glad to seem them move past their problems. She just hoped it would stay like that but developing a relationship with your estranged parents was going to be hard. Let alone if it happened in the spotlight of the media.

 **TBC**


	15. Chapter 15: US citizen

**QUESTION: I have a few things pre-written, but should I wrap this story up or would you like to see her involved in a few more storylines.**

* * *

"Do you have everything?" Henry asked and for a moment he felt like a dad whose daughter was going on a school trip. He'd said those exact words to all his kids before they left for their camping trip in elementary school.

"I think so. If not, I'll have a reason to come back." Lauren smiled.

"Don't worry, I'll come back." Lauren promised and with that she was out the door.

"Henry." Elizabeth sighed as she threw her arms around him. He rubbed her back, worried why she was so sad suddenly.

"What's wrong?" He asked, wondering if she was in pain somewhere.

"I can't- I can't lose her again." She said panicked and Henry tried to calm her down.

"Babe, breathe. You heard her, she'll come back. You won't lose her again, okay?" Henry pulled away from her and put her head in his hands to make her focus on him. "I promise I will protect this family." Elizabeth closed her eyes as she let the words sink in. Henry brought his lips to his wife's forehead and kissed it before pulling her in a hug.

"I love you." He whispered, and she nodded against his chest.

"I love you too."

* * *

A week passed, and Elizabeth had been busy at work with the upcoming shutdown of the government. When she arrived at work this morning, all workers had left except for Jay and Blake. The usual filled and loud conference room was now quiet and dull.

She knew Blake had been anxious as acting Chief of Staff, but he was doing a great job. Especially, under the circumstances. She sat down as she watched the two men tease each other, missing moments like this.

"Can we please just sit down?" Blake suggested, feeling nervous. They all sat down, and he began the meeting. "Okay, there has been a surge of protests from international students attempting to enter the U.S. to begin their studies, who are unable to due to the suspension of the visa programs."

"Getting pressure from Commerce, too." Jay added to the statement. "They're asking for special visas for highly skilled workers."

"Well, we can tell Commerce to put pressure on Congress. They're the ones shutting down the government." Elizabeth replied, and they continued their meeting until they were interrupted when Elizabeth's phone rang. She looked at the screen and smiled at the familiar name. She usually declined phone calls when she was in a meeting but not this time.

"Will you give me a minute?" She got up but didn't leave the room. As long as they weren't talking about something too private, she didn't mind her staff overhearing. "Hi, are you okay?"

"Hey. Yeah, I'm alright. I just- I need your help. Can I come over?" Lauren asked, and Elizabeth wondered what was going on.

"Always, is everything alright though?" The overprotective, motherly tone clearly audible.

"Not exactly but I'll explain later. Where can I meet you?"

"Well, with the shutdown going on you could come by the office?" Elizabeth suggested.

"Sure, but how do I get there? I mean going to the State Department isn't like going to the supermarket around the corner..." Lauren trailed off and Elizabeth let out a laugh.

"I'll have someone meet you outside."

"Okay, thank you."

"Bye." Elizabeth hung up and turned to the two men as they continued their meeting.

About an hour later, she got a text from one of the guys on her detail saying that Lauren had arrived. She wondered if the girl had already been on her way when she called.

"Guys, my daughter is coming up. Can we pick this up later?" Elizabeth asked and the nodded. When they got up, the heard a voice from the office space.

"So, this is where the magic happens?" Lauren spoke as she walked in with one of the security service men leaving when he noticed she was with her mother.

"That would be the White House." Elizabeth smiled and walked over to pull her in a hug.

"I just imagined it busier and more productive." Lauren joked once she let go of her mother and looked around the room.

"Oh, you know how we are at State, always the lazy ones." Jay said sarcastically, earning a smile from both women.

"Lauren, meet Jay." She said, before adding, "always the optimistic one."

"Nice to meet you." Lauren shook his hand before turning to the other man in the room.

"And this is Blake."

"It's so nice to finally meet the famous daughter of State in person." Blake told her, and she smiled, not entirely sure how to respond to that.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Elizabeth asked curious. Her daughter had sounded very serious on the phone.

"As you know the visa program has been suspended. I'm here on a student visa but it expires half way into my year here, so I need to get another one which wouldn't have been a problem…" She trailed off and Elizabeth finished it for her.

"If the visa program hadn't been suspended."

"Now my university here wants me to go back to the Netherlands to get it sorted out. My Dutch uni agrees except I got this letter in the mail today." Lauren said, and she handed the letter to her mother. Elizabeth accepted it and put on her glasses, so she could read it. However, it was in Dutch so she looked at her daughter for help. Lauren gave her a summary.

"The Dutch government is refusing to let me in to the country since I came there illegally when I was a baby." She explained with a sad tone in her voice.

"That's ridiculous." Jay cut in. He was already brainstorming ideas.

"It's true, though." Elizabeth sighed, taking off her reading glasses. "Officially, you're not a Dutch citizen."

"Then what?" Lauren asked desperately, "I'm a girl without a country?"

"No. Officially you're a US citizen."

"But the Netherlands is my _home_. I've got a Dutch passport, ID and drivers license." Lauren was starting to feel hopeless and swallowed back the tears that started to blur her vision.

"The shutdown should be resolved soon. Maybe we can convince your school to wait it out, so you wouldn't have to deal with going back to the Netherlands yet." Blake suggested but Lauren shook her head sadly.

"It doesn't matter. If I don't get it sorted out within the week, both universities will kick me out since my visa expires. Which also means I need to get out of this country next week, except I have no place to go." Lauren leaned against a nearby desk while she brushed her hand through her hair. The whole situation was giving her a massive headache.

"We can get you US citizenship, that's a start."

"How? I have one week left."

"You're standing in the State Department." Elizabeth smiled before guiding them to her office.

"Say I do get citizenship, I will still get kicked out."

"Isn't there a way for you to finish it online maybe?" Jay asked.

"No, because I need a permanent home since I wouldn't be able to stay at campus. The Dutch government doesn't finance online studies, so I can't afford a place." Lauren sighed as she sat down on the couch. Elizabeth sat down next to her while Jay to a seat in the chair.

"Guys, can you give us a sec?" Jay and Blake left the room and Elizabeth turned to her daughter again.

"I have an idea but I'm not sure if you want it." Elizabeth saw her daughter was intrigued so she continued, "You are always welcome in our house, you know that. If you want, you can move in with us. That way you have a permanent address and you can finish your course online."

"I- I appreciate the offer but I can't."

"I know you need space and we intend to give it to you. I just- I want to help you. Be there for you." Elizabeth looked down at her hands as she continued, "This is the first time I get to be your mother, please let me help."

"You don't owe me anything." Lauren tried to assure her. She didn't want her mother to do this out of obligation.

"Yes, I do, but that's not why I'm doing it. You're my daughter and I love you. You have a home with us."

"I'm not sure if I'm ready, but I don't really have a choice." Now it was Lauren's time to look down at her hands. She felt embarrassed admitting it to her mother.

"We'll give you all the space you need." Elizabeth promised, "Or as much as we can while living under the same roof."

Lauren gave her mother a sympathetic, soft smile. She wasn't ready for such a big step, but she did really enjoy her time with her parents. They were loving and supportive. The fact that they were willing to take her in when there was so much they didn't know about her, was something she admired.

"Okay." Lauren agreed, and the way her mother's face lit up, assured her she had made the right choice.

It had surprised her before, and it once again did, how certain things made her mother so happy. She couldn't even begin to imagine what losing a child must feel like and she wondered if she had acted selfish from the beginning.

Setting limits and boundaries for herself meant breaking the ones her parents had in place. They probably wanted nothing more than their daughter home with them, yet she had treated them like strangers. They were, but maybe she shouldn't have made it as obvious. Not reminding her parents of that painful fact.

"Alright, I will make sure your citizenship application will be fast tracked. I can pick you up tonight?" Elizabeth offered, trying to contain her excitement. Excitement that didn't go unnoticed by her daughter.

"I love the enthusiasm, but I need to get my school on board first. Give me two days to get everything in order and pack my bags." Lauren replied and tried not to feel guilty about the masked sadness on her mother's face.

Elizabeth sighed. She had waited eighteen years for her daughter to come home. Then again, she waited that long, so she was sure she would survive another two days. No matter how much she wanted to argue and tell the blonde to come with her now, she agreed. "Okay."

"Can you just- Please make sure everyone in your family is okay with this." Lauren started and when her mother's mouth opened to speak, she stopped her. "And I know you're going to tell me not to worry but I don't want to come between you and your family."

"You're not but I promise I will ask them."

"Thank you." Lauren hugged her mother before standing up. "I should probably start by calling my universities. Do you need anything for the application, by the way?"

"Yes, but if you have the time you should talk to Blake. He will handle it." Elizabeth guided her to her assistant- and current Chief of Staff.

"Ma'am, we have a situation in Sierra Leone." Jay interrupted them before she could even speak.

Elizabeth looked conflicted between her daughter and her policy advisor, but Lauren assured her. "Go, I will finish the application with Blake and I will text you what I find out."

"Alright, I'll call you tonight." Elizabeth hugged her daughter one last time before she left with Jay.

Half way through the afternoon, she decided it was enough for today, so she sent everyone home before packing her bags and leaving herself. She was excited to tell Henry the good news.

 **TBC**


	16. Chapter 16: moving in

**Another update! thanks for the suggestion and I will for sure put some of them in this story, so stay tuned!**

"Hi babe." He greeted her with a kiss as soon as she walked through the door.

"Hi. I have some great news." She told him, not being able to keep it in any longer.

"Okay?"

"Lauren is coming to stay with us." She blurted the information out and waited for her husband's reaction.

"What?" Elizabeth explained what had happened, not being able to contain her happiness.

"Our daughter is coming home." Henry smiled as he watched his wife tear up. This was the moment they both had been waiting for. It had taken long enough and they were ready to finally be at full capacity again.

"She is." Elizabeth allowed herself to be pulled in by him and felt reassured in his arms. "Now we need to tell the kids."

"It's going to be a big adjustment." Henry stated, and she agreed. Having her for a sleepover was different from having her move in.

Elizabeth untangled herself from his arms and walked halfway up the stairs.

"Can everyone come down for a minute? Family meeting." She yelled and not soon after she heard footsteps coming her way.

"What's up?" Jason was curious what so important. It's not like family meetings were a regular thing.

"We have some news." Henry started, looking at his wife to continue.

Elizabeth figured she should just put it out there and see their reaction, so she did. "Lauren is moving in with us."

"What?" Stevie had a frown on her face that matched Jason's. However, Alison's smile told them she was on board.

"The Dutch government won't allow her back into the country because she came there illegally. She can finish her studies online, but needs a permanent home address for that." After she explained, she saw her eldest daughter nod. They took it as a sign she was on board as well.

"So, where will she be staying?" Jason asked confused. There were only three bedrooms and a guest bedroom that had served more as a storage space the last couple of months.

"We'll clear out the guest bedroom. Something that had to be done anyways." Henry told him, and he looked around to see if there were any more questions.

"Look," Elizabeth sighed, looking from one of her kids to the other. "We know it's going to be a big change and we really hope you guys will be okay with it. We don't expect you to be right away, but eventually."

"I'm really happy for you both." Alison said as she hugged both parents simultaneously.

"Thank you, noodle."

"I guess we have some clearing out to do." Stevie laughed and they all went upstairs to start. As soon as they opened the door they all sighed. How had they let it come to this mess?

"Divide an concur, baby." Jason stated before starting in the right corner of the room. Everyone started somewhere else.

Between the unused cutlery and old baby clothes, they decided it was best just to move everything to the basement. They didn't feel like actually cleaning it up.

When it was finally time for dinner, they had cleared almost all the boxes. Elizabeth decided now was a good time to call Lauren, as she had promised.

"Lauren."

"Hey, it's me. Did you find out anything yet?"

"Yes, my school agreed to let me finish the course online except I will need to go back to the Netherlands, twice, for certain exams. It will be in about a month and then a few months later." Lauren explained, and Elizabeth nodded, not realizing her daughter wouldn't be able to see that.

"Once you have your US passport, we can apply for a special tourist visa or maybe even a student visa." Elizabeth heard a big sigh on the other side of the line and spoke her next words with a gentle and soft tone, "Are you okay?"

"I just can't believe I'll be going home as a tourist to my own country."

"I'm not giving up. Once the shutdown is over, I'll coordinate with the Dutch government and try to get you dual citizenship." Elizabeth made a mental note to tell Jay about her plan.

"You'd do that?"

"Of course. Now, what time should we pick you up the day after tomorrow?"

"Whatever suits you best. I'd spare you the trouble, but I can't come with my friend's car since he needs it back in Philly."

"Henry will probably pick you up, if that's alright. How about 4pm? You will be here just in time for dinner."

"Okay and thank you, for everything." Elizabeth smiled at the heartfelt gratitude from her daughter It was weird how for both of them, small gestures meant so much.

"Anything I can do to help. I'll see you soon."

"Bye." They both hung up and Elizabeth joined her family at the kitchen table. She was excited for her daughter to get here and wasn't sure how she would survive tomorrow.

The following day went by pretty fast. The kids all went to school while Elizabeth went to work, and Henry finished clearing the guest bedroom.

"Mom?" Alison walked downstairs while her mother was heating up some leftovers. "Are you ready for her to move in tomorrow?"

"I've been ready for eighteen years." Elizabeth sighed. It was nice that Alison was showing an interest.

"Do you think she will like it here?" Alison sat down, and Elizabeth took the food out of the oven. She sat it on the table and handed Alison an extra fork.

"I hope so." She sighed as she started eating, with Alison following her lead.

"What will happen after she finishes her studies?"

"I don't know, but for now lets just enjoy the time she will spend here." For some reason Elizabeth did find the ray of questioning weird and wondered what was actually bothering her daughter. "Noodle, you know we aren't replacing you, or Stevie, or Jason."

"I know." Alison whispered, and the eldest blonde finally realized what it was about.

"We will have to divide our attention more, but I promised you I will listen to you and that's not going to change."

"Okay. I should probably head to bed." Alison said good night before residing upstairs again.

The following day, Henry texted her when she was leaving to pick up their daughter. She wrapped up work because she wanted to be there when they got back.

Before Henry was even out of the city, he got a call from Lauren.

"Hey, I'm on my way as we speak."

"Yeah about that." Lauren started, "The media somehow got word of me dropping out and it's crazy outside. Can I meet you at the diner we met last time you were here?"

"Yes, of course. I will be there in about an hour and a half."

"Alright, thanks. See you then."

Just before 4 pm, Henry pulled up at parking lodge behind the diner. He saw his daughter was already out of the car talking to someone. His guess was that it was the friend who owned the car.

"Hey." She greeted him when he got out of the car.

"Hi." She gave him a quick hug before introducing him to her friend. "This is Bryan, the friend whose car I use."

"Henry." He introduced himself before looking at his daughter again. Lauren opened the trunk and pulled out one large suitcase, a hand luggage case and her backpack. They stored it in Henry's car before he took a seat behind the wheel, giving his daughter privacy to say goodbye.

It was weird how his daughter's entire life was in the back of his car. Or well almost her entire life. In just two small suitcases and a backpack.

He saw them talk for a bit, before they hugged. She walked to the car and took place next to him. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

The drive was mostly silent. Henry tried small talk every now and then, and she would reply, but it would never convert into a conversation. He saw her stare out the window as the landscapes just passed by and wondered if this had been the right decision.

He wanted nothing more than his daughter home with him but pushing her limits meant she would distance herself from them. They had seen it before.

He had no idea what to talk about next, so he just said the one thing that would work in almost any situation, "Are you okay?"

"I just need some time to get used to it." Lauren reply came. She hadn't talked to him much this trip, but the truth was, things had already gone way too fast and now she was moving in with them. She felt like they would have expectations. Expectation she wouldn't be able to live up to. What would happen once they realized that?

She didn't want him to feel like it was about him, so she figured she should talk. "I guess this could be another first. First road trip?"

Henry smiled when he heard her speak and nodded. "First father-daughter road trip."

"I say we do another one soon." She told him, and he agreed. When he wanted to ask if she had any ideas, the phone rang and when he saw it was Elizabeth, he asked her to answer it.

"Hi it's Lauren."

"Hey, I was just wondering what time you will be home?"

"I think we're less than 20 minutes out."

"Alright, is your dad annoying you yet with the historic stories about the city?" It still felt weird when people called Henry her dad. He was, but she wasn't used to it yet. She heard Elizabeth speak again, "I'm not on speaker, am I?"

Lauren let out a laugh before assuring her mother. "No, you're good and not yet."

"Okay well, see you in a bit." Elizabeth hung up the phone before starting on cleaning the house a bit more. She knew her daughter would eventually see how messy they could be, but she wanted to postpone it for as long as she could.

The twenty minutes passed quicker than she thought, and Alison had already started making dinner. She called her two remaining kids down.

"Lauren will be here any minute and dinner is almost ready. Can you guys set the table?" Elizabeth asked, and they started while she changed from her sweats into a regular shirt before walking downstairs again.

"Jase, we need another plate." Stevie yelled from the dinning table.

"Sorry, habit." He mumbled before grabbing another plate and heading towards his oldest sister.

"Hello?" They heard Henry yell after the front door opened. Elizabeth rushed to him and saw him standing next to two suitcases and their daughter. She couldn't believe this was actually happening.

"Hey." She smiled as she kissed her husband and shared a hug with her daughter.

"Should I bring this upstairs?" Henry offered, and Lauren nodded. He picked up the biggest suitcase while she followed with the smaller one and her backpack.

"We cleared the guest bedroom yesterday, but there's still a bookshelf there. We haven't had time to move it yet, but we will soon." Elizabeth told her as she followed the pair.

"It's fine." She followed them into a room. There was a window on the left and opposite side of where she walked in. The bed was shoved against the wall on the right side of the room. A desk was in opposite the left corner and a closet at the end of her bed against the wall. The bookcase they were talking about was on the left next to the desk.

"We will let you get settled. Dinner will be finished in about ten minutes if you're hungry." Elizabeth told her, and she walked out with Henry, closing the door behind them.

Lauren sat down on the bed as she looked around the room. The feeling reminded her of arriving at a new foster home. The uncertainty, unfamiliarity and uncomfortableness.

She opened the smallest suitcase and picked up a few picture frames. Having a little bit of familiarity always helped and she put them on her desk. A few were from when she was little but most of them were with her friends.

Unpacking wasn't something she felt like doing yet. Taking out her phone she smiled at the 'good luck' text from one of her friends before heading downstairs. She saw her siblings in the kitchen but her parents nowhere in sight.

 **TBC**


	17. Chapter 17: First day

**Sorry it took so long, but I'm back with a new chapter! fyi, I love that some of you have imput for this story and I will for sure write it! It might just be later on in the story since I have a basic storyline set in place already.**

* * *

"Hey." Lauren put her hands in her back pockets as she slowly walked into the room.

"Hi." Alison dropped the spoon and walked over to her to give her a hug. "I'm so excited that you will be staying here."

The oven bleeped, and Alison let go to open it. "I hope you like lasagna. It's veggie."

"Yeah sure. Can I help with anything?" Lauren offered but Alison shook her head no while she brought the steaming dish to the table. Stevie walked upstairs to get their parents while the rest already sat down. "Do you guys have a seating chard or something?"

"No, you can just sit wherever." Alison told her, and Lauren took a seat next to Jason while Alison sat down opposite of her.

"That smells so good." Elizabeth said as she walked in, followed by Henry and Stevie.

"Thanks mom." Alison said. Elizabeth sat at the head of the table, closest to Alison and Lauren while Henry sat on the other side.

"The cook should start, don't you think." Henry stated, and Alison put a piece on her plate.

Jason and Alison told their parents about their day while they ate and for a moment Elizabeth looked around the table. Her family was complete, and nothing could make her happier.

"How's the job going, Stevie?" She asked, and her eldest daughter shrugged.

"It's fine but I'm still on the lookout for a better job."

"Where do you work?" Lauren asked with an interest.

"I'm a hostess." Stevie told her, and Lauren nodded. "but if I see something that I'm more interested in, I will just apply."

"Did you come across anything yet?" Her dad asked, and she sighed, regretting telling her parents. She was sure they would start suggesting jobs now.

"Not yet."

"By the way, dad. Did you have a chance to read over my essay?" Jason asked, and Stevie was glad the conversation was over.

They finished dinner and cleaned up before all kids resided upstairs, leaving Henry and Elizabeth with a moment alone.

"Babe, do you really think this was a good idea?" Henry sighed as they sat down on the couch.

"What do you mean?"

"I want nothing more than for her to be here, but what if her moving in means pushing her even further away." He told her, and she thought for a moment. She had wondered the same thing but tried not to think about it too much. She wanted to believe this was the right choice.

"I don't know, but what other choice did we have?" Henry put his arm around her and she snuggled closer and they lay like that for a while.

In the mean time, Lauren had been unpacking her clothes and the large suitcase was empty. The smaller one had a few pairs of shoes and other personal stuff. She didn't feel like unpacking that one yet, so she just shoved it under her bed with the other empty suitcase.

A knock on her door caused her to look up. "Yeah?"

Alison peeked around the corner, before walking in. "I was just wondering if you needed anything."

"No, thank you."

Alison sat down next to her sister on the bed as she looked around. The dull walls didn't really have a 'homey' vibe and she figured she should talk to her parents about that.

"We were going to watch a movie, want to join?" Alison asked, and Lauren nodded. She didn't really feel like sitting in her room all night anyways.

Alison grabbed her hand and guided her downstairs. Everyone was already sitting in the living room while Henry chose a movie. He sat on the couch with Elizabeth and Stevie while Jason, Alison and Lauren took place on one of the remaining seats.

Halfway in, they paused the movie to grab some drinks and snacks. When only Henry returned, all four kids gave him a confused look.

"Mom will be down soon. She got called into work, though." He explained and as if on cue, Elizabeth walked in while putting on her jacket.

"I have been summoned to the White House." She sighed before kissing Henry, saying good bye to her kids and walking out the door.

After the movie everyone scattered again, and Lauren knocked on Stevie's door. When she heard a mumble, she opened the door.

"Hey, do you have a minute?" Lauren asked as she walked in, closing the door behind her.

"Sure, what's up?" Stevie turned her chair around to face her sister.

"You said you had been job hunting for a while. Can you help me out? I have no idea where to start?" Lauren bit her lip and waited for her sister's reply.

"You _want_ to work?" Stevie asked surprised. Her parents had pretty much forced her to get a job.

"Yeah. Studying online isn't as cheap as regular studying." Lauren laughed. She had saved enough for this year from working in the Netherlands but that was for regular studying. Plus, she needed to fly to the Netherlands twice this year and plane tickets weren't cheap either.

"Mom and dad would help out if you asked." Stevie told her.

"I know, but I don't want them to." Stevie gave her sister a weird look. She didn't understand it but didn't question it either.

"I can text you a couple of sites that I used." She offered, and Lauren gave her a grateful smile.

"Thank you." She left her sister's room and walked back to hers. Her phone buzzed, and she saw texts from Stevie with a few links already.

When Elizabeth returned from the White House, all kids were already sound asleep. She met Henry in their bedroom and watched him read before he noticed her.

"Hey." His voice sounded soft and gentle.

"How was it after I left?" She asked curious as she walked into the bathroom and got ready for bed.

"It was fine. Everyone went upstairs after the movie. Lauren came down to say goodnight, but I didn't see her afterwards." Henry told her, knowing she was mostly asking about their daughter.

"How do we give her space when she lives in the same house?" She sighed as she leaned against the doorway. She was determent to do the right things, except she had no idea what the right things were.

A knock on their door grabbed their attention, and watched Alison open the door.

"I thought I heard you come home." She smiled as she saw her mother.

"Couldn't sleep?"

"No, I actually wanted to talk to you about something. I was thinking maybe we could give the guest bedroom a makeover? Right now, it feels more like a prison cell." Alison told her parents and Henry chuckled at the exaggeration.

"I think that would be great." Henry told her daughter. He hadn't thought about it and this way it might feel more like home for Lauren.

"Okay, well good night." She told her parents before walking back to her own room.

The following day, Elizabeth was out the door before any of the kids were up and Henry had breakfast on is his. He heard footsteps coming down the stairs and noticed Jason. He had to get to school and so did Alison. They had a system where one of the kids would start in the bathroom and the other one would have breakfast. They would switch afterwards. Since Stevie wasn't an early bird, she would get the bathroom later in the morning.

However, now that they had to share it with three girls and Jason, they might have to come up with a new system. Henry figured they would see if this worked and if it didn't, they could always deal with it then.

Once the two youngest were out the door, Stevie appeared downstairs.

"Morning." She yawned, and Henry shook his head amused.

"Good morning. Tea?" He asked, and she nodded before taking a seat at the kitchen table.

For a moment, Henry was confused when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Then he remembered Lauren was staying her and he turned around. She was already dressed, but her hair was in a messy bun.

"Good morning." She said cheerfully.

"Good to know I'm not the only one who likes to sleep in." Stevie joked as she handed her sister a plate.

"Sorry about that. I'm usually up early, but I pulled an all-nighter the night before last, so I guess I needed the sleep."

"Studying or partying?" Stevie laughed, and Lauren looked at her father before she looked at her sister again.

"More like a get together." Lauren clearly downplayed it but Henry didn't comment on it, "My friends wanted to say goodbye."

"They do know you're only two hours away, right?" Henry joked.

"Most of my friends came here for a five-month exchange while I chose an entire year so, they all fly back to their home countries next week. There are still a few here, though."

"Do you want tea?" Henry asked as he placed a steaming cup of tea in front of Stevie.

"You wouldn't happen to have coffee?" Lauren asked.

"Yes, sure. Milk or sugar?" Henry tried to not show how surprised her was.

"Neither." Lauren started eating breakfast and Stevie told her dad about her plans for the day.

"Did you have plans yet?" He asked his other daughter while he handed her the cup.

"Not really. I might just unpack a bit and I have a skype call planned with someone from my Dutch uni to make sure I'm set for online studying." She told him, and he nodded. He had the day off and maybe he could use it to spend time with her.

"When do you officially start?" Stevie asked as she took a sip of her tea.

"Since tomorrow is Saturday, they decided it was best if I skipped this week and started on Monday. I will have one week of catching up to do since the course started last Monday."

Stevie got up to get dressed, "I will text you the Wi-Fi password." She told her before walking upstairs.

"I have to go out later today, will you be okay on your own for a bit?" Henry asked. She didn't want her to feel uncomfortable.

"If you want, I can leave while you're gone?" She suggested, not sure of they wanted her alone in their house.

"We trust you and this is your home, too." Henry assured her, and she nodded.

Henry had planned something with Elizabeth last night, so he went to the store to get everything ready. He met his wife back home that afternoon. Alison had once again made dinner, with the help of Lauren. Jason had set the table because Stevie would be at work all night.

"Hey, do you have a minute?" Henry asked as he walked into the kitchen, followed by Elizabeth.

"Sure." Lauren said and stepped away from the pans while Alison took over. She was curious as to what her parents wanted to talk about.

"We have something for you." Elizabeth said, and Henry showed them a wrapped package from behind his back.

"A gift?" Lauren asked confused before a thought crossed her mind. "It's not my birthday, is it?"

"No, but we want you to know that you always have a place here and we want you to feel at home." Elizabeth told her, and Henry handed her the package. She carefully unwrapped it and looked at the item in slight confusion.

"You got me a bucket of paint?"

"To paint your room with. You can choose any color you want, but the base had to be white anyways. You're our daughter and you can't sleep in our spare room. It just sounds wrong so it's yours now." Elizabeth explained and watched her daughter's face turn from a frown into a grateful look. Alison smiled as she watched her parents interact with her sisters. She was glad they had listened to her last night.

"Are you serious?" Lauren asked in disbelieve and Henry nodded. "I- I don't know what to say."

"Well, we have another gift." Elizabeth told her, taking a small box out of her purse.

"Are you asking me to marry you?" Lauren joked, and Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

"No, just open it."

"A key?"

"To our house. To your house." Elizabeth watched her reaction and saw the girl walk towards her before she wrapped her arms around her.

"Thank you." She whispered, before hugging her dad.

"I guess we have a room makeover coming up this weekend." Alison told her sister and she told her about all the idea's she already had.

Henry and Elizabeth watched both sisters and knew they had made the right choice. It was going to be hard, but ultimately worth it. They wanted her to know she had a home here. Parents who loved and supported her. She didn't for a second want her daughter to doubt their determination to make this relationship work.

At the same time, they had to keep their distance and they hadn't found a way yet. It would take some practice- some trial and error, but they wanted her to know she is part of the family without pushing her.

 **TBC**


	18. Chapter 18: make-over

Saturday arrived and Elizabeth had agreed to go with the girls to the shop to pick out a paint color while Henry removed the bookshelf from Lauren's room.

"How may I help you today?" One of the store employees walked towards them.

"We're looking for a bucket of paint." Elizabeth stated, and she waited for Lauren to explain which color.

"I thought maybe a light blue, lavender color?" Lauren suggested, and they followed the man to some paint swatches.

"I love this one." Alison told her as she handed her one of the swatches. It was more lavender than blue, and Lauren picked up one that was closer to blue.

"What do you think?" She asked her mother, showing both her swatches.

"This one." She pointed to the one Lauren had picked out and she handed it to the man.

"And how much are you planning on painting?" He asked as he walked with them to pick up the buckets.

"I was thinking just the wall when you come in on the right?" Lauren told her mother and looked at her for help.

"Okay. Let's take two just in case." Elizabeth told her, and the man handed her two buckets.

"That should cover it. Anything else?"

"No, thank you."

Henry walked into his daughter's room and looked around. On the bed lay a pillow he guessed she brought with her. The closet was filled with her clothing, but what caught his attention were the pictures on the desk. Slowly he walked over and picked one of them up. He saw a little girl on a tiny bike. She had red rain boots on and a big smiled on her face. He guessed she was about four years old and it was unmistakably Lauren.

Between the sparkle in the girl's eye and the way she smiled, there was no doubt in his mind. He lowered himself onto the chair and brushed over the picture with his thumb. Was she a happy kid? What had she been like as a baby? Had she enjoyed going to school like Alison or had she dreaded it like Jason.

He picked up another frame where she was a little bit older. She was with another girl and she looked about eleven years old. They were both wearing matching backpacks. She seemed happy and he was glad to see it. He turned the frame and on the back was text. Using google translate to read it, he figured out it was her first day of high school.

The third frame he picked up was he standing in front of a house. The Dutch flag raised, and a bag hung from it. He wondered what it meant, so he pulled out his phone to google it.

 _It means they passed their high school exams_.

He wished he could have been at her graduation. He wished he could have been there for her first day of school or teach her how to ride a bike.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the front door open and realized he had been sitting there for way too long. The bookshelf was still in the room and he sighed as he walked downstairs. He would have to do it some other time.

"Hey, did you find the perfect color?" Henry asked as he kissed his wife.

"Yes, did you finish removing the bookshelf?"

"No, sorry." He apologized, before looking at his daughter. Alison felt like she was about to intrude in a moment, so she excused herself, telling her sister she would bring the buckets upstairs.

"I went in your room to clear the shelf out, but I saw some of your pictures and I lost track of time." He admitted, and she gave him a sympathetic and understanding smile.

"What pictures?" Elizabeth asked confused. She wasn't sure what Henry was talking about.

"Pictures from when I was younger." Lauren explained, and Henry nodded.

"Is it- May I see them?" Elizabeth asked. She didn't get a chance to see her daughter grow up. She had no pictures of her when she was younger, so seeing them would mean a lot to her.

"Of course, they're upstairs on the desk." Lauren told her and walked with them upstairs. Alison had put the buckets in her room already. Elizabeth picked up one of the pictures, the same one Henry had picked up earlier. The little version of Lauren on her bike. She let out a small gasp, which she disguised as a laugh, trying to hide the fact that she was on the verge of crying.

"My dad wanted to teach me how to ride my bike, but I told him I got it. He figured I would fall down as soon as he let go and I would learn that it wasn't that easy, but when I tried I managed to get to the end of the street." Lauren told them. A small tear filled up Elizabeth's eyes and gracefully ran down her cheek. She couldn't put in words how much she had wanted to be there.

"I know you probably think they are horrible people who took your baby away. But my parents supported me" Lauren stated, "They loved me.

"I know" Elizabeth whispered back, she nodded once as she choked back tears.

"And I'm here now" Lauren offered as reassurance.

"Yeah"

Lauren turned to her mother and wrapped her arms around her, an action Elizabeth happily complied with. She smelt the sweet scent of her daughter's skin, and her silky hair brushed against the side of her neck. Elizabeth held on for as long as Lauren would let her. Lauren felt Elizabeth's body relax in her arms, as if this was the sort of closure she needed; confirmation that her daughter was back. Elizabeth stroked Lauren's hair and kissed her on the side of her forehead before they broke the embrace.

"Thank you for showing me these." She whispered.

"I have a few more back in the Netherlands. When I return in a few weeks, I'll bring them with me."

"I would love that." Henry handed her the picture with the Dutch flag. "When was this?"

"It's high school graduation. We have this thing where you put up the flag with your bag when you pass your exams." Lauren explained. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her pictures.

"This was graduation day." She showed her mom a picture of her and two friends holding up their high school diploma before scrolling to the next. "This was prom."

Elizabeth took the phone from her daughter's hands to examine the photo more closely. She was wearing a simple, but elegant, maroon colored dress. It was long and with her heels on she seemed even taller. Her blonde hair was straightened and she was wearing matching maroon colored eye shadow. "You look beautiful."

A light blush crept up on her and Lauren thanked her mother.

"I translated the text on this one. It says first day of school, right?" Henry asked as he picked up the one with the two girls and backpacks.

"Yes, it was the first day of high school. We were in the same class."

"Who is she?" Elizabeth asked. She took the photo from Henry and looked at the other girl in the picture.

"That would be Lieke. She's my best friend and like a sister to me."

"Does she still live in the Netherlands?" Henry wondered if they could bring her over some time. He knew it bothered her that she couldn't really go the Netherlands since she was no longer a citizen.

"She does, but at the moment she is studying in Tokyo. She is doing a year there like I'm doing it here."

"What does she study?"

"International communication."

Elizabeth handed her daughter the picture back before wiping her face with her hands. "I'm so proud of you. Of the person you've become. I love you."

Lauren let out a sigh before her eyes met her mother's. "I love you, too."

Elizabeth exhaled deeply in shock and a smile covered her face from ear to ear. She placed her arm around Lauren's shoulders and Lauren placed her arm around Elizabeth's waist. She never thought she would hear her daughter say that. For a moment she wondered if her mind had played tricks on her, but the smile on her husband's face told her she had heard it right.

"I think it's time for dinner." Henry told them.

She held on for as long as her daughter would let her, but eventually felt her pull away.

"Let's go downstairs." Elizabeth held on to her daughter's hand the entire time, making sure she was really here, and this was really happening.

"Dinner is ready." Stevie told them. Jason and Alison had already set the table. "I just made mac cheese."

"I'm starving." Elizabeth growled as she picked up the spoon.

"Mom, when can we start painting?" Alison asked, already excited to start.

"Tomorrow is Sunday, but make sure your homework is done before you start painting." She told her daughter, and Alison nodded in agreement.

"Can I help, too?" Jason asked, surprising everyone. Weekends mostly consisted of video games when he wasn't doing home work.

"Yeah, sure. The more help, the faster it is done." Lauren smiled, and Stevie spoke next.

"Count me in!"

Henry and Elizabeth shared a look, but both decided it was best not to help.

They figured it was best to give her space like they promised, and have the siblings spend some quality time together.

"We should go to the mall tomorrow to pick out some decorations." Alison had an entire plan set up, which she explained in detail to her family.

After dinner, Elizabeth took Henry aside for a moment. They hadn't really had a chance to talk today yet.

"A security concern came up at work today and I don't know what to do." She sighed, and Henry turned to face her.

"What security concern?" He asked worried. Was something going in with his wife?

"Remember when we first found out about Lauren, we decided not to give her a detail? Well, now that she moved in, Diplomatic Service is concerned and would like to assign her at least a one-man detail like the other kids."

"We both know her answer to this." Henry rubbed her hand on his wife's back as he sighed.

"Do you think we should ask her?"

"I think we should wait for a while. Do you think DS will be alright with that?"

"I'll try." They returned to watch tv with the kids.

The following morning, Alison and Lauren were up early while Jason and Stevie slept in. Alison started breakfast, so Lauren could use the bathroom.

"Good morning, noodle." Elizabeth placed a kiss somewhere in her daughter's hair before sitting down next to her.

"When we're done with Lauren's room, can I paint mine too?" She asked with such excitement, it caused her mom to laugh.

"One project at a time, but sure." She picked up a cup and filled it when she saw Lauren walk downstairs. She was dressed in light, ripped skinny jeans and a plain, white t-shirt. Elizabeth held back a sigh for she would never understand the trend of ripped jeans. Why buy something that was already broken?

"Morning." Lauren picked up a cup and filled it with coffee, before sitting down at the table.

"Are you ready?" Alison asked and Lauren nodded.

"Except we didn't buy any rollers."

"We have some in the basement, just in case. I'll try to find them in a minute." Elizabeth assure her and sat back down.

"Do you have any old news papers?" Lauren explained further when both ladies have her a confused stare. "That way the floor won't get painted as well."

"We have old blankets you can lay down. We used them when we moved in here, too."

 **TBC**


	19. Chapter 19: Too much

About an hour later, all kids had had breakfast and were ready for some painting. They moved the desk, bed and closet to the middle of the room, and lay blankets all around. Alison, in the mean time, had picked up a wireless speaker and put on some music.

Each sibling started painting a different wall and after a while, Lauren noticed her mother in the doorway. She didn't say anything and just let her watch until she walked over to her, handing her a brush.

"If you're just going to stand there, you might as well help." Lauren teased, but Elizabeth didn't smile. She looked more like a scared deer caught in headlights.

"No, I should leave you be." She was already backing out of the room and Lauren knew what it was about. She let out a sigh, before touching her mother's arm and stopping her movements.

"I said I needed space, not avoid me like the plague." She felt her mother's hand brush a strand of hair behind her ear. "Unless you don't want to then we can just finish it ourselves."

"It's just we promised you your space and we're just not entirely sure what that means." Henry appeared behind his wife, curious how the painting job was going.

"I will let you know when I need some, I promise." Lauren handed her dad a roller as well and they walked in, starting on a section of the wall that hadn't been painted yet.

Less than an hour later, they had finished to paint the room. They would paint the one wall blue tomorrow after everything was dry.

"You might want to crash at one of your sister's rooms since this smell will be here for a while." Henry told her and Alison immediately smiled.

"You can sleep in my room."

"Thanks, I suppose that could work." Lauren lifted her mattress of the bed with Henry's help and brought it to Alison's room.

"Now, who is ready for some lunch?" Jason was already half way down the stairs with Stevie on his trail.

"I'm in such a mood for a pj sandwich." Alison stated as she followed her siblings downstairs. Lauren walked after her with their parents.

"As in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?" Lauren asked confused and Alison nodded. "Is that an actual thing? I thought it was just something they do in the movies."

Alison gasped exaggeratedly, but Lauren did get five confused and surprised looks from her family. "What?"

"You've never had one before?" Stevie asked in shock.

"No, it's not really a thing we do back home. Peanut butter and Nutella, sure, but not peanut butter and jelly."

"That's weird." Jason told her as he started making his own sandwich. Lauren laughed for she had the same thoughts about their suggestion.

"I think it's about time you become a true American and eat one." Elizabeth told her as she picked up the peanut butter.

As if someone punched her in her guts, Lauren felt an overwhelming loss overcome her. She hadn't thought about her citizenship status yet and it was suddenly hitting her. She was no longer a Dutch citizen and to her it felt like life was slowly erasing her past, removing her from it.

"Excuse me." Lauren mumbled before she hurried back upstairs, not noticing the concerned and confused looks.

She ran her hands through her hair as she sat down on the ground in the freshly painted room. For now she didn't care about the smell.

She hadn't meant to be rude and just walk out, but she needed a moment to clear her head.

She had been a Dutch citizen all her life. It was her home. What would she be without it? She didn't know how to be someone's daughter. Someone's sister. She had always been the new girl or the new family member.

Her time with her adoptive parents was a time she barely remembered. She knew she had been happy with them, but she also remembered the devastation when she found out they were gone. That she would be put into foster care.

Now, foster care wasn't like how they portrayed it in the movies. It wasn't a family that took you in as theirs with a happy ending. Or an abusive, alcoholic foster dad and a heroin addicted foster mom. For her, it hadn't been anything like that. Most of the people she had stayed with did it simply for the money. She got fed and had a roof over her head, but they had more attention for their biological kids, if they had them.

Not every family she had been with, had been exactly like that. Some were more accepting and open while others tended more to the neglecting, and perhaps even abusive, side.

She was glad when at sixteen, her best friend's mom finally got her foster license and she could stay with them. She had known her best friend, Lieke, from an earlier age.

When she was put in her first foster home, she had to transfer schools and met Lieke. They instantly became good friends and she had always thought it was because Lieke had lost her dad at a young age. They both knew what it felt like. Her friend's mom had always treated her like a daughter and when she was twelve, she tried to get a foster license to take her in, but it took a long time since she was a single mother.

After a few different foster homes, she finally moved in with them and stayed there until she moved here to study. Some of her stuff was still there and it was home to her.

Lauren heard someone clear their throat and turned to find Elizabeth in the doorway. She had a plate in one hand and a glass of water in the other.

"I thought you might like something to eat." She put it on the desk that was still in the middle of the room as well.

"Thanks." Lauren smiled, and her mother opened her mouth to speak, but eventually closed it and walked out.

She knew she owed her parents an explanation, but she wasn't ready to go downstairs yet. Instead, she grabbed her laptop from her bag and sat it down in front of her on the floor. She scrolled through the sites Stevie had texted her while she ate.

About an hour later, she closed her laptop. She decided it was time to face her parents and apologize for what had happened earlier. Sighing, she got up and walked downstairs.

She found Jason on the couch playing video games and Stevie next to him reading a book. After placing her dishes in the sink, she continued to walk towards the office and found her parents with another woman. They were discussing something while a few files lay on the coffee table.

"Sorry." She mumbled, not meaning to interrupt, but Elizabeth shot up.

"Wait," Lauren stopped her movements and saw the unfamiliar woman get up.

"O my God." She whispered while a hand covered her mouth. She took a few steps towards the girl. "Bess."

"I know." Elizabeth smiled and Lauren realized the woman was probably a friend since she had used a nickname.

"Hi, I'm Lauren." She said. She felt uncomfortable under the other woman's stare and it seemed to snap her out of it.

"Isabelle. I'm a friend of your mom's." She still looked in disbelieve at the girl, before continuing. "I was there when you.."

"When I supposedly died?" Lauren finished and saw Isabelle slowly nod.

"I'm so confused. Bess, she looks so much like you." Elizabeth walked over to her friend and wrapped an arm around her.

"I know." She spoke proudly, leaving Lauren feeling even more awkward.

"I will leave you be." She said before backing out of the room.

That night, Henry and Elizabeth had finally managed to get a moment alone with their daughter. They were curious what she had wanted to talk about earlier that day.

"We were wondering what you wanted to talk to us about when you met Isabelle." Henry told her, watching her fill a glass.

"I wanted to apologize. For just walking away earlier."

"We get it. You needed space." Elizabeth supported her. "We're all trying to find a way in this situation."

"May I ask why you left?" Henry treaded carefully. He didn't want to push her, but they had been wondering if it was something they said.

"It just became a bit much, I guess." Lauren told them vaguely and Henry nodded. He knew they wouldn't get more out of her, so pushing wouldn't do any good. "There is one more thing."

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth was worried something had happened.

"Yes, but in order to make this work there need to be no lies." Lauren looked down at her hands. This wasn't something she wanted to share yet, but she owed it to her parents. "I need to admit something about my latest foster parents."

"Let's sit." Henry guided them all to the breakfast table and they sat down.

"I was fourteen, almost fifteen, when I first arrived there. I spent most time outdoors. I left for school in the morning, then hung out with friends only to return to the house at night to sleep. At first it didn't seem to be a problem, but after a few months my foster dad started telling me to be home more often." Lauren started telling the story while both parents waited anxiously for what was to come next. Neither of them interrupted her as she spoke so she continued.

"The more I was there, the more I realized something was going on. One day, I saw my foster dad hitting my foster mom. He threatened me and made me swear not to tell anyone. My foster mom promised it was just a one time thing, but I knew she was lying. I didn't have any kind of connection with either of them so I just avoided being at the house as much as possible. For a few months, she managed to protect me from his abuse until a week before my sixteenth birthday. She had gathered all her stuff and left, leaving me to live with my foster dad. When I got home that day, my foster dad had cooked dinner and set up this sort of romantic, candle lit dinner for the two of us." She paused for a moment, gathering the courage to continue. She had managed to avoid eye contact with her parents, but her mother's hand on hers caused her to look up. The tears she found in her mother's eyes told her to finish the story before neither of them couldn't hold them back.

"I realized he was delusional, but played along. I didn't want to provoke him, so I had dinner and went upstairs afterwards. He walked up with me and I politely tried to tell him I wanted to sleep, but he got angry."

Elizabeth waited for her to finish the story, but she didn't seem to continue so she pushed her a little. "What happened next?"

"When he hit me for the first time I expected to see regret on his face, but instead I saw this twisted smile and a hint of joy in his eyes. I was fifteen and he was a full grown man, I didn't stand a chance." Lauren admitted before taking a deep breath. She was glad the story had come to an end. "That night I packed a bag and sneaked out of the house."

"Where is he now?" Henry asked with a low growl. He tried to act calm, but was furious after he heard her story.

"Lieke's mom, Jennifer, convinced me to press charges. My foster mom didn't want to, but my testimony still put him away for five years."

Elizabeth ignore the tear that escaped her eye and focused on her daughter. "What did he do to you?"

"The details are not important. I just thought you should know." Lauren got up, leaving her parents on their own. She barely even made it upstairs when she heard Alison yell.

"Can everyone gather in the kitchen?" Alison yelled and they all walked in.

"What is it?" Henry worried something was wrong.

 **TBC**


	20. Chapter 20: Never have I ever

"I thought it would be nice to get to know each other better." Alison started, unlocking her phone. "So, I figured we could play a game."

"I'm in." Stevie said excited and everyone, including Lauren, nodded.

"What game are we doing?" Elizabeth sat down with the rest of her family. She was glad it would keep her mind off the story her daughter had just told them.

"Two truths and a lie. Basically you say two things that are true and one that's false. The others need to guess what's true and what isn't."

"We should make teams." Elizabeth spoke excited and they ended up with Henry, Jason and Lauren in one team while Stevie, Alison and Elizabeth formed the other team.

"I'll start." Stevie thought about her statements for a moment. "My high school boyfriend taught me how to juggle. I was voted most likely to succeed in college. I used to have a big crush on my 7th grade science teacher."

"She can't juggle." Jason said and Stevie pretended to be offended.

"I could see someone having a crush on their teacher so I'm with Jason." Lauren said and it was up to Henry now.

"Alright, we say that's a lie."

"Nope." Stevie smiled. "Jackson taught me how to juggle. My 7th grade science teacher was 60-something year old Mr. Hubbs."

"Wait, you were voted most likely to succeed in college." Elizabeth smiled at the irony of her dropping out. Stevie gave her mom a playful push and they continued.

"My turn." Henry repositioned himself on the couch. "My nickname in elementary school was Squishy. I had my first beer when I was 5. I once went into the plane to go skydiving, only to find out on in the air I had forgotten my parachute."

"Well, I happen to know his nickname was Squishy." Elizabeth grinned. Henry had picked out statements she might not know and it had mostly worked.

"I don't think a marine would forget his parachute on a skydiving trip." Stevie looked at her dad to see if she could read his face.

"I say he didn't have beer when he was five." Alison said and they eventually all agreed with Alison.

"That's correct. I did go in a plane without my parachute, but I didn't have a beer at age five."

It was Alison's turn and they all awaited her statements.

"I can fit 21 marshmallows in my mouth at once. In high school I wrote poetry for fun. I have over 100 selfies on my phone, but have never posted any of them on social media." Alison waited for the other's answers and after some debate, they came to a decision.

"You can't fit 21 marshmallows in your mouth."

"Yes I can." Alison smiled proudly. "I didn't write poetry in high school, though."

"We're going to have to see that some day or else we won't believe you." Henry laughed and they turned to Lauren for her two truths and a lie.

"I graduated top of my class in high school. I taught dance for a year to kids. I once hitchhiked my way from the Netherlands to Italy."

"I don't know." Stevie mumbled.

"She might have graduated top of the class." Elizabeth told her and tried to read her daughter's face.

"Hitchhiking across Europe takes a lot of time and she's only eighteen." Alison added.

"So, we think that's a lie?" Elizabeth asked and Stevie nodded. They stared at Lauren for the answer and she smiled.

"Nope. I did hitchhike to Italy. I didn't graduate top of my class, though."

Henry started to think about Alison's earlier statement. "How old were you when you hitchhiked?"

"Last summer, so seventeen. I went with Lieke to Rome and we bought a plane ticket back home."

"You went to Rome?" Alison forgot about the game for a moment and wanted to hear the story.

"Yeah. Because when we hitchhiked we came across a lot of other cities." Lauren remembered her sister was into fashion, "Including Milan."

"Are you serious?"

"You two can have your fashion talk later." Henry laughed as he interrupted his enthusiastic daughter. "It's your mom's turn."

"I failed my driving test two times. I once threw Will in the pool when we were little and he couldn't swim. I let go of a bat at my friend's house and it shattered their kitchen window."

"Dad, do you know any of these?" Jason asked and Henry narrowed his eyes as he watched his wife.

"No, but I don't think you mom took her driving test three times in order to pass."

"Well, I'm with you." Jason agreed.

"Me too." Lauren had no idea so she figured she should just agree with them.

"That's right. I passed during my first time."

"Wait you threw uncle Will in the water when he couldn't swim?" Stevie asked her mom in shock.

"I was mad and my mom jumped after him so nothing really happened."

"Okay my turn." Jason said as he took a moment to come up with stories. "I passed last week's history test. I asked someone to the school dance and I signed up to be class president."

"I honestly want all of them to be true." Elizabeth stated and Jason rolled his eyes with a smile.

"I don't think he asked someone. Last week he said he wasn't even going." Alison commented and Stevie nodded.

"But then again class president?" Elizabeth doubted, hoping Jason would give something away.

"Well, his mom is secretary of State." Stevie teased.

"Okay Jase. We say you didn't ask someone to the dance."

"Actually I did ask someone. I'm just not running for class president. We don't even have that anymore." Jason explained but no one heard anything past the first statement.

"You asked someone to the dance?"

"As in a girl."

"You asked someone?"

"Yes." Jason laughed nervously. "Her name is Piper and that's all I'm going to tell you."

"Is she pretty?" Alison continued the ray of questioning and Stevie joined in.

"Do you have a picture?"

"We're so going to Facebook stalk her."

"Yes she's pretty. Yes I have a picture but I'm not showing you and she doesn't have Facebook." Jason hoped they would drop it. Lauren noticed and focused on her dad

"Why exactly were you called squishy in elementary school?"

Elizabeth laughed and Henry gave her an annoyed but playful glare. "I was a little bit chubby as a kid."

"Do you have any pictures?" Alison wanted to see her dad as a kid.

"Your grandpa might have them. I'll ask next time he calls." Henry told her.

"I played a game in school that might be a quicker way to get to know each other. Never have I ever." Stevie explained the game to her parents. "So if you've done it, you raise your hand."

"Never have I ever taken part in a school talent show."

Alison, Stevie, Elizabeth and Lauren raised their hands.

"I did the singing thing in fifth grade." Alison told them.

"I danced in second grade."

Elizabeth grinned as she remembered Stevie's performance. It had been horrible, but she had been young.

"I did Shakespeare with the drama department." Elizabeth told them and saw all kids look surprised. She knew she had told Henry, but apparently her kids didn't know yet.

"I did a cover of a girls group with two friends in sixth grade." Lauren told them. Neither Henry nor Elizabeth wanted her to feel like they were interrogating her so they kept further questions to themselves.

"Never have I ever broken a bone." Everyone raised their hand and they did a quick round of what had happened.

"Never have I ever cheated on a test." Lauren was the only one who raised her hand and she looked at her family in disbelieve.

"You never cheated on a test?" Everyone shook their heads no and she wondered if it was weird that she had.

"Which test did you cheat on?" Jason asked. For once impressed by his sister.

"Anything; physics, math, history, economics." Lauren smiled as she saw everyone's reaction

"Multiple tests?"

"I wasn't as focused on high school as I would've liked." Lauren admitted, "But I can't believe none of you have ever cheated on a test."

"Never have I ever been drunk." Alison laughed as she remembered the first time she met her sister and she raised her hand. Everyone, except Jason, followed her lead.

"Anyone who wants to suggest one?" The others on her list weren't ones she wanted to do with her parents, so Alison looked around to see if someone else had an idea.

"Never have I ever fallen asleep in class." Henry said and looked challenging at his wife.

"Only because you kept me up all night." Elizabeth shot back and Stevie got up.

"Okay, mom. There's still such a thing as tmi."

"No, no. Not like that." She tried to hide the slight blush that crept on her cheeks. "You dad made me study with him for his finals and I fell asleep in class the next day."

"Is that what they called it back in the day?" Alison teased.

"Yeah I don't really want to be present for this conversation anymore." Stevie said good night to her parents and her siblings followed soon after.

"Do you remembered that night?" Henry asked as he now sat quietly and alone with his wife.

"Oh we did a lot more than just studying." Elizabeth grinned and leaned in to kiss him.

"Want to go upstairs and study with me?" Henry saw a devious twinkle in her eye, grabbed her hand and guided her upstairs.

 **TBC**


	21. Chapter 21: Replaceable

**Prepare for some drama the next few chapters heheh**

Two weeks passed and it was a few days before Lauren left to go to the Netherlands for an exam. She had managed to get her flight to the Netherlands with the help of her mom and her staff on a her current US visa and she could pick up her passport soon.

It had been a busy day and when all kids were home, the siblings watched a movie together. Alison had left to get a refill when she heard her mother come home.

"Are you having an affair?" she heard her mother ask and she took a step closer to hear the rest of the conversation.

"No."

"We'll you're going to have to be a lot more convincing-." Alison couldn't bare to listen anymore and rushed to her siblings. She couldn't believe her dad would do something like that.

"What's wrong?" Jason noticed his sister running back in with a distressed look on her face and tears threatening to fall.

"Mom thinks dad is having an affair." Alison admitted, wiping a tear away.

"What?" Both Jason and Lauren looked at her in confusion, but Alison shrugged her shoulders, indicating she didn't know more.

"I- I saw dad with a woman this morning and when I confronted him, he acted like it was nothing, but I could see he didn't expect to be caught." Stevie explained what she had seen. She had told her mother's press coordinator who apparently had told her mom. At the time, her heart had given her dad the benefit of the doubt, but she knew something had been wrong.

"So, mom's leaving him, right?" Jason defended his mother. He couldn't believe his dad would do something like that to all of them.

"Okay hold on." Lauren mingled, having stayed out of the conversation until now. "Give your father a chance to explain before you write him off."

"Explain how he hurt mom and tore this family apart?" Jason shot back, and Lauren decided it was best to stay out of it. She had not been around long enough to fully understand the dynamics of this family.

"Hey guys, what are we watching?" Elizabeth walked in before anyone could say something. Henry followed behind, standing closely to his wife.

"I'm done watching." Jason mumbled before heading out, followed by Alison.

"Me too." Stevie agreed and left the room as well. Both parents looked after their kids while Lauren stayed on the couch and she sighed about the dramatics. She ran her hand through her hair, flipping some pieces over to the right side.

It was not like she didn't understand where they were coming from. She just hoped they would all talk about it, instead everyone kept silent and pretended nothing was happening.

"What was that about?" Elizabeth asked as she took place next to her daughter on the couch, with Henry following her action.

"Nothing, unless there's something either one of you would like to say?" Lauren challenged, her eyes shifting from Elizabeth to Henry.

"No, why?" Henry asked confused.

"No reason. Is it alright if I freshen up before dinner?" Lauren asked and when Elizabeth nodded, she left to go upstairs as well.

"What is going on?" Henry asked confused, wondering if it was just him.

"I have no idea." Elizabeth whispered, She just ordered dinner and managed to get all kids downstairs to eat.

"How was everyone's day?" Elizabeth asked and raised her eyebrow when no one answered. Even Lauren kept quiet, not wanting to say the wrong things.

"Well I had a great day." Henry cut in, not sure what was going on.

"Yeah I bet." Jason mumbled.

Henry slowly dropped his fork and gave Elizabeth a confused look. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing forget it."

"So, how's the book writing going?" Elizabeth asked, knowing she wasn't going to get much out of her kids. Besides, they had to keep up the story that Henry was writing a book instead of working for the NSA.

Jason snorted and received two questioning glares from his parents.

"Is there something you'd like to say, Jason?" Henry asked.

"I don't know, is there?" He challenged, and Elizabeth dropped her fork on her plate before looking at her kids.

"Okay, _what_ is going on with you guys?"

"I know dad is having an affair." Alison blurted out and started crying. She didn't want her parents to separate and she couldn't handle it, so she shoved her chair back and ran upstairs before she could even get a reply.

"I'm not." Henry defended himself.

"Nice one dad." Stevie blamed him. "I saw you, or had you forgotten?" She followed her sister upstairs to comfort her.

"Your dad's not having an affair." Elizabeth tried to assure the remaining two kids.

"Mom, how can you be sure?" Jason asked and they all ignored the pained expression on their dad's face. How quickly his entire family turned on him after one accusation, scared him.

"It was just a work colleague."

"Yeah that's what they all say." Jason argued angrily.

"Calm down, give him a chance to explain." Lauren told her brother and he now focused his attention on her.

"You should keep out of it. You haven't been here for that long but you're obviously too scared to pick a side. Stop ignoring the obvious." He told her, and Lauren looked at him, surprised about the amount of emotion on his face.

She could see the situation had a bigger impact on him than he would probably like to admit. She tried to not let her brother's words get to her but before she could reply, Henry interrupted.

"Jason go upstairs, now." He said in a stern, but steady voice and Jason got up from his chair.

"Whatever you say, sir." He said with a mocking tone before receding upstairs.

"So far for the nice family dinner." Elizabeth sighed, putting her elbows on the table and dropping her head in her hands.

"Are you?" Lauren asked Henry before asking again, "Are you cheating on your wife?"

"No." Both Elizabeth and Henry said.

"Then, what?" She asked with a slightly desperate tone, "because you have three incredibly upset kids upstairs who need an explanation."

"I gave them one. The woman Stevie saw was just a work colleague."

"You can see how that's not going to work with them, right?" They would need more information to be convinced. What confused her the most was that Henry wasn't even explaining it. It was as if he would rather have them think this than know what was actually going on. But what could be more important than this?

"Do _you_ think I would do this?"

Lauren didn't answer that, couldn't possibly begin to answer it, causing Henry to walk out of the room and Elizabeth dropped her head in her hands once again.

"Who would blame you now if you chose to cut ties with this family." Elizabeth sighed and Lauren looked at her worried.

"Are you afraid I will end up leaving?"

"How can I not? From the day we met, you've been introduced to chaos."

"Trust me, I've had chaotic and this is not it. I'm here and as long as you want me, I'm not planning on leaving." She tried to support her mother by laying a hand on hers. "But I need you to be honest with me. Are you one hundred percent sure he's not having an affair."

"Yes!" Elizabeth cried out. Why didn't anyone believe her? She couldn't exactly tell her kids their dad was working for the NSA.

"Alright, I believe you. I can probably get Alison and maybe Jason on board, but Stevie saw him. You need to talk to her."

"How come you believe me?"

"I don't know the first thing about how this family works, but from the moment I met you I could see that you two have this amazing relationship. Henry told me you are his entire life. That he wouldn't know what to do without you, so I know he wouldn't purposely hurt you."

Lauren left her mother at the table and walked upstairs to convince Jason and Alison that their dad wasn't cheating.

"Your father is not having an affair." Elizabeth stated stern as she walked up to Stevie that night.

"So, what did he tell you? She's a grad student right? Honestly, mom, how naïve are you?" Stevie didn't understand why her mother was ignoring the obvious proof.

"Stevie, if I really thought your dad was cheating, do you think he'd still be breathing? Let alone living here?" Her mother had a point, but it still didn't explain what was going on.

"Maybe you're not interpreting things correctly." She tried to reason with her mother.

"I was a CIA analyst. You're entitled to your judgments, but not to explanations." Elizabeth started, taking a deep breath to continue "and you're grounded for being 20 and drunk in a bar."

"You can't ground me." Stevie argued. Why was she the one getting punished? "I have to work."

"Work and home. Two weeks."

"This is ridiculous." Stevie said, raising her voice ever so slightly. "I'm an adult."

"I guess that's why most adults don't live with their parents." The statement caused Stevie's jaw to drop before she quickly stood in front of her mother. She couldn't believe she had just said that.

"So, you can just take in one kid and throw out the other? Good to know were replaceable." Stevie stormed upstairs, but this time Elizabeth didn't leave it be. She followed her daughter upstairs.

"Stevie!" She opened the door to her daughters room.

"No, you've made yourself pretty clear." Stevie shouted. All the commotion caused the remaining kids to gather in the hallway upstairs.

"I'm asking you to respect our privacy, that's it." Elizabeth told her, but Stevie grabbed her bag.

"No, if you want to play house with your new kid, be my guest. I'm clearly not valuable here." Stevie walked past her mother and pushed Alison and Lauren aside before rushing down the stairs.

Elizabeth regained composure after the sudden outburst and followed her. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Out." Stevie growled and she put on her jacket. Henry appeared from the study and found three kids on the stairs, watching mother and daughter fight. A fight he had missed out on.

"What's going on?" Henry asked. When Stevie opened the door, he quickly pushed it shut and moved between his daughter and the door. The devastated look on his wife's face told him whatever it was, it wasn't good. "I don't know what's going on, but we're Mccords. We talk about things.

"Mom doesn't want me here." Stevie stated simply, but Elizabeth shook her head.

"I didn't say that."

"Sorry, she just wants me to move out." Stevie met her mother's eyes, daring her to refute her words.

"Look, Stevie, I don't want you to move out."

"No, you just want to replace me. You've finally got your baby back and since I'm a screw up anyways, why not throw me out." Stevie dropped her bag and crossed her arms.

"None of you are replaceable." Elizabeth told her, glancing to the other kids for a moment.

"Whatever." Stevie mumbled and walked back upstairs when she realized her dad wasn't going to let her out the door.

Elizabeth's eyes followed her and scanned past the three kids on the stairs. They landed on the look of confusion and betrayal of Lauren.

Elizabeth knew she had promised all of her children were okay but her moving in. And they had been, at the time. It was a big adjustment and decided to just give it time.

After Jason's outburst earlier and now Stevie blaming her sister, it wasn't really they welcome wagon she had wanted for their daughter.

When everyone was upstairs again, Elizabeth turned to Henry. "I'm sorry."

"It'll be okay." He told her as his arms pulled her closer.

 **TBC**


	22. Chapter 22: The fight

**And the drama continues :)**

After her fight with Stevie, Elizabeth hadn't seen any of the kids downstairs. She was unpacking some boxes after they got damaged by the flood in the basement. Stevie's picture book caught her eye and she opened it. So many memories came back to her as she looked at the pictures. Next up was Alison's. It was barely finished while she found Jason's still in plastic.

Another book grabbed her attention and she picked it up. It was completely damaged by the water, but she still opened it. It was Lauren's picture book. There were three pictures in it. The first one was when they found out they had been pregnant. The second one was half way through the pregnancy and the third one showed a eight and a half month pregnant version of herself.

She had never gotten the chance to finish it. She didn't even have any more pictures, but she did take out the three that were in it. The book was destroyed, but the pictures were still usable. She put them aside and carefully placed the books in a dry box.

She was exhausted and ready for bed. When she lay down next to her husband, she showed him the pictures. "Do you remember this?"

"Of course I remember this." He smiled as he took the pictures from her. "One of the happiest days of my life."

"What do we do about Stevie?" She let out a deep sigh. She couldn't stand fighting with her kids.

"Just give it some time. She will come around." He pulled her closer and they soon drifted off to sleep.

It wasn't until Thursday, that Elizabeth had come home with good news. She found Lauren and Alison making dinner in the kitchen.

"We're making lemon chicken with roasted potatoes." Alison told her mother who walked in.

"That smells really good." Elizabeth kissed Alison's head and turned to the other girl. "I've got good news. Your citizenship application has been approved. You need to go to the immigration office in the morning to answer a few question and you're good to go."

"Really? That's amazing." Lauren smiled as she moved to hug her mother, "Thank you."

"I do need to talk to you about the interview, though, but we can do that tonight."

After dinner, they sat down to go over the interview.

"They are going to ask you simple questions and I thought we could quickly go over them so there won't be any problems tomorrow." Elizabeth suggested and Henry picked up the paper with the questions while Lauren nodded.

"What's your full name?" Henry started.

"Lauren Marije van Dam."

"Names of your parents." Elizabeth asked and she knew she had to name her birth parents.

"Elizabeth and Henry Mccord."

"Country of Origin?"

"United States of America."

"Current home address." They continued down the list until they were finished.

"We forgot one. Date of birth?" Elizabeth asked next and Lauren sighed. She knew these questions so why did they have to practice them.

"November twenty-second, 1999." She told them and Elizabeth shared a confused look with her husband. "What?"

"You were born on November fifteenth." Elizabeth whispered, waiting for her reaction.

"No, that can't be. My passport says twenty-second." Lauren replied confused and Henry sighed.

"I'm guessing the twenty-second is the date you came to the Netherlands." Henry spoke and Lauren pushed her chair back a little.

" _Jesus_." She was getting frustrated.

"It's okay." Her mother tried to comfort her, but she didn't feel like talking about it.

"What time do I have to be at the immigration office tomorrow?" Lauren asked, trying to move past the subject.

"It opens at eight." Henry told her. "Look, it's alright to be upset."

"Okay, because Bryan invited me for the weekend and we were just going to meet up with some friends." Lauren told her parents her plan to go to Philly tomorrow and stay overnight.

Neither parents felt like they had earned the right to tell her no, yet. Besides, they figured if she was out of the house it might give them all a little time to catch their breath.

"When will you be back?" Elizabeth was starting to get used to her being here and she was scared to let her go.

"Saturday evening. I'll go to Philly after I go to the immigration office." Lauren told them and they nodded.

"But you're leaving for the Netherlands on Sunday." Elizabeth really wanted her daughter with her for as long as she could.

"I'll be back on Saturday, so you'll see me before I leave."

Friday rolled around and both parents figured they should all do something together. Lauren had left for Philadelphia this morning after her meeting and the other three kids were all at home when Elizabeth arrived.

Henry had managed to get everyone downstairs for a movie and although both Stevie and Alison had their phones in their hands, they were downstairs.

Stevie's anger had mostly passed this week and things were slowly going back to normal. That was until Elizabeth awoke Saturday morning from her phone buzzing. She groaned as she rolled over and picked up her phone. The bright light was harsh on her eyes and it took her a few seconds to get used to it.

Daisy had sent her a bunch of articles and she sighed as she clicked on them. What could be so important that she had to read this at eight in the morning?

 _Lauren Mccord has been pictured drinking and partying until 4am just a little while after moving in with Secretary Mccord and her husband, Henry Mccord._

 _She appeared rather stylish as she and her group of friends played pool and danced during the night out._

 _According to a source, she and her friends kept popping outside the venue for regular cigarette break, though she didn't seem to smoke herself._

 _Something that the newly discovered Mccord daughter doesn't shy away from, is alcohol. She was seen drinking multiple shots, though officially she is underage. How she got into the club is unknown._

There were several pictures of her daughter from last night. Elizabeth sighed as she threw her phone on the bed, an action that caused Henry to wake up.

"Why are you up?" He mumbled as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Our daughter was drunk in a club last night." She spoke and Henry shot up.

"What?" His hand tried to wipe the sleep from his face and he wondered if he had heard her right. Elizabeth figured it was best to show him and let him read the article. "We've got to go talk to her."

"How, Henry? What right do we have to tell her what to do and what not to do."

"We're her parents."

"But are we really?" The question lingered in the air and neither of them said anything. They had a few hours before she would be back tonight.

They had just sat down to start dinner when the door opened and Lauren returned.

"Perfect timing I see." She joked as she dropped her bag and walked in.

"Have you eaten yet?" Henry asked and when his daughter shook her head, he got up to fetch her a plate.

"Thanks." She replied after he handed it to her and they all started eating.

"Did you have a nice time?" Elizabeth asked. She didn't want to talk about the article yet- or at all for that matter.

"Yeah. It was great seeing everyone again." Lauren told her, knowing she had to tell her something else as well. "I do need to-"

Jason cut in before she could finish her sentence. "I made the football team, by the way."

Lauren got a weird sense from her siblings. A distance. Alison was sitting opposite from her, but was yet to make eye contact with her. Unbeknown to her, the other three kids had read the articles about her as well.

"That's great!" Everyone cheered him on and he smiled proudly.

"Sorry, what did you want to say?" Elizabeth turned to her again, but she shook her head.

"Not important." She smiled at her brother. "Congratulations."

She got a half smile, half glare and it made her wonder what was going on. She had only been gone for less than two days. Had their opinion of her changed this quickly?

Dinner was quiet and every now and then one of them would tell the others about their day. Henry and Elizabeth did the dishes while Alison and Jason were watching TV. Stevie was working on her computer at the breakfast table and Lauren was packing upstairs. Just before 9pm, Lauren returned downstairs.

"All packed." She told them and found both parents in the kitchen.

"That's good." Elizabeth mumbled and Lauren raised an eyebrow.

"But?" She felt like her mother was holding back something.

Elizabeth let out a sigh as she realized now would be as good a time as ever. "We wanted to talk to you about last night."

"Okay?" She was not sure where they were going with this.

"About being drunk." Henry added and Lauren pressed her lips together. This wasn't what she had expected.

"I wasn't drunk." She corrected him. She might have had a few drinks, but she made sure she wasn't drunk.

"You were in a bar." Elizabeth stated.

"Yes, and the legal age to drink in the Netherlands is eighteen." It felt like her parents were ganging up on her and she didn't like it.

"But you're not in the Netherlands."

"No, I'm very well aware of that thank you." She wasn't sure why they kept rubbing her nose in that fact.

"Look, I know its been hard-" Her mother tried to reason with her, but to her it felt more like patronizing.

"You don't know. My childhood was a lie, as it turns out I've never actually celebrated my birthday and frankly my biological siblings don't want me in their house." Lauren slightly raised her voice as she pointed at the three kids who had moved closer to hear the conversation.

"That's not true. We all want you here." Henry tried to make sure she knew she was part of the family.

"Funny way of showing it." The mocking tone didn't go unnoticed by either parent and they wondered if she had been feeling this way the entire time. Up until now they felt like things had gone really well. That she was beginning to feel part of the family.

Elizabeth pulled up the article and a few others on her phone. Including a picture of Lauren and, who she assumed was, Bryan. "Are you two dating?"

"I don't see how that matters." She shrugged her shoulders. Not really in the mood for this third degree her parents were giving her.

"It's all over the news."

"We're just friends."

"That does not look like 'just' friends." Elizabeth pointed at the picture on her phone where the two were dancing closely.

"Okay, maybe we're like friends with benefits but we're not dating."

"Alright I think I'll let you handle this." Henry mumbled, not that interest in his daughters private life.

"He's been charged with possession, last month." Elizabeth folded her arms over her chest.

"What?" Henry turned back around. He didn't know his wife had done a background check on the guy.

"First off, ever heard of privacy? And second, if you read that much, you also know he was cleared due to lack of evidence. Do you really think I would date a felon?"

"Right now, I don't know what to think." Elizabeth sighed.

"You don't know what to think of me?" Lauren's eyes widened. She had hoped her parents had a little bit more trust in her. "Well thank you very much for the vote of confidence. "

"We're talking drugs, Lauren." She tried to get through to her. She needed her to know how serious it was.

"He wasn't convicted!"

"You're defending a drug dealer?" Henry's eyes widened. Up until now they had only seen the well behaved side of his daughter. He knew sooner or later they would discover another side of her, but he hadn't expected it to be this.

"Hold on! He is not a drug dealer. He smokes some weed sometimes, big deal."

"Big deal? Do you have any idea how this looks?" Elizabeth gave her a look of despair.

"Oh I'm sorry. Do you want me to put on my Sunday dress and smile for the camera?" She knew it wasn't fair, but the words left her mouth before she had even realized it.

"That's not what I meant." Her mother spoke with a softer and more gentle tone.

"As long as your image is good?" Elizabeth was visibly hurt by the statement and didn't know how to reply, so she waited for her daughter to continue. "I asked you if your kids were okay with this and you said yes."

"They were, they are."

"Clearly they aren't!"

"That's not what this is about." Elizabeth sighed, near desperation.

"Then what?"

"I don't want you to grow up!" Elizabeth finally let it out with a defeated tone. "I never got to be a part of childhood and seeing all of this just reminds me that I wasn't there."

For a moment Lauren's face softened. Her heart went out to her mother and she was about to comfort her when Stevie interrupted.

"So, she doesn't get punished for underage drinking at eighteen but I'm only a few months away from twenty-one and I do get grounded?" Stevie spoke angrily.

"Stevie." Henry warned her. Now was not the right time for this conversation.

"No she's right." Alison now cut in as well. The past few months she had started to learn how to speak up, though she had sat back with the drama surrounding her new sister. She finally felt confident enough to say what she had been thinking all this time.

She turned towards Lauren, face slightly red from the built up anger. "You don't see them as your parents, but that doesn't mean you get to take advantage of that."

"Alison..." Henry warned again, but it didn't seem to have much effect. He knew this had to stop before Lauren felt like her entire family was attacking her.

"No! I don't know what's worse, finding out I have a dead sister or you coming back here. Since day one it's been a mess. You let my parents believe you were dead for a year when they could have known the truth. You have led them on and kept them at a distance and you have no idea how much it hurts them. To have their own daughter reject them." Alison was yelling at her sister and saw Lauren tried to stay calm, but the words just left her mouth as she argued.

"I know that, but I'm trying to make it up to your parents and I'm trying to make it up to you."

"You can't just expect us to forgive you." Lauren pressed her lips together; she didn't want forgiveness because she didn't think she needed it. Yes, she had made a mistake but not telling her parents was also her choice, a way for her to wrap her head around the fact that her entire childhood had been a lie. Slowly, tears built up in her eyes but she refused to let them spill.

"I'm not asking you to, but I couldn't tell them earlier."

"You had a choice. Is there anyone whose opinion matters to you? Clearly not ours since you kept your existence a secret."

"You don't think it is hard for me, too? It's really hard, but I couldn't just accept the fact that five strangers are my family."

"Hard on you? Tell me did you lose your daughter or sister and discover that she is really alive and well and has known all this time."

"No." Lauren looked at Alison and saw her sigh. The glare she got told her what Alison was thinking _; I thought so_.

"No, I found out that the parents I was told didn't want anything to do with me, never gave me up and the people who lied to me about it were the two people I always thought were perfect."

"So now you're the victim? You keep acting like you're one with the family, as if nothing is wrong. You don't even see them as your parents."

"Alison, that's enough!" Elizabeth finally cut in. The fear of a broken family was so strong, she didn't even notice the panic rising up.

"You think I'm one with the family? I will always be the new girl, the sister who was taken. I will always be the dead daughter that got kidnapped." Lauren shot back as a tear rolled down and she wiped it away quickly.

A silence fell as everyone let the words sink in. "I can't do this. Moving in was clearly a mistake." Lauren told her parents and Elizabeth gave her a pleading look.

"No, it wasn't. Please. We can talk about this."

"I can't believe this. She's the one who should plead for our forgiveness." Stevie ignored the angry stare from her dad.

"Are you really picking her side?" Alison joined in.

"This isn't about sides. I'm not choosing between my kids." Elizabeth told her. She regretted bringing up the subject in the first place and wished things could go back to normal.

"You don't have to. " Lauren told her before turning to her siblings. "I'm leaving in the morning anyways."

Lauren walked out and up the stairs. The three remaining kids went back to what they were doing as if nothing had happened. Henry took his wife's hand and guided her to the dining area to talk.

"You had her friend investigated?" He asked, trying not to make it sound like an accusation.

"No, Daisy took the liberty to do so and she sent me what she had found." Elizabeth sighed, leaning against the table.

"I don't want her to leave tomorrow. Not like this." Henry sighed. They needed time to process and talk. Time they didn't have.

"Me neither." Elizabeth nuzzled her head in his neck and wrapped her arms around him. Both needing each others comfort.

When thirty minutes had passed, Elizabeth went upstairs to see if she could talk to her, but found she was in the shower.

Slowly the kids resided upstairs throughout the evening to go to bed and they were surprised to find footsteps coming down the stairs later. Lauren was dressed in pj's, something they hadn't seen before since she was always dressed when she came downstairs, and her hair was up in a bun.

"I just came to say good night." She lingered around the kitchen area while both parents faced her from the couch.

"Good night." Henry told her, but Elizabeth wanted to talk about the fight earlier.

"Can we talk about what happened tonight?"

"We don't have to. Every family fights, it's normal." She hoped the answer would be enough for her mother and she would let her go to bed. "Good night."

"Night." Elizabeth whispered sadly. She didn't want to push her, but she hated having to ignore her motherly instincts like this.

"Come here." Henry wrapped his arms around her as soon as Lauren was upstairs. She lay close to him and soon drifted off to sleep.

 **TBC**


	23. Chapter 23: Loss

It had been a long day.

Jason Mccord may be the son of the Secretary of State, but he was also a typical teenager. All he really wanted was something to eat and for school to start after lunch so he could sleep late.

As it stood though, he had been up since seven. His mother had left his lunch on the counter as she had been called to the White House late last night, or early this morning, he wasn't quite sure. That meal had long since disappeared. If wishes came true, Jason wished his mom would have take-out ready when he got home.

Jason dropped his bag and jacket on the bottom of the stairs and dashed to the kitchen. It was dark and quiet. He groaned. Dinner would be late tonight. He grabbed a soda from the fridge and started looking for something to eat. Where was his mom?

He knew Stevie and Alison would be out all day and his dad had a late night meeting.

In the back of the pantry, amongst all the healthy options Stevie and Alison ate was a bag of Doritos. Jason kicked the pantry door shut and headed upstairs to his room while he waited for his mom to come home.

He stopped in the doorway of his sisters room. The door was open and his mother was laying on Lauren's bed. Her soft, even breathing said she was in a deep sleep. The deep scowl on her sleeping face told him it wasn't a restful one. Jason slowly approached her, not wanting to wake her.

He carefully placed his snack and drink down on his sister's desk and he studied his mother's face. She had frowned in her sleep after Iran. It had been a blow to her heart and ego to admit she needed help. Having panic attacks and nightmares wasn't easy for his mother and he knew it.

When she had finally stopped pushing her feelings down, her entire family was there to help get her life back together. She had looked defeated, but slowly she got the fire back in her eyes.

Jason smiled now thinking of it. He hated when his parents fought, but what had scared his even more was when his mother had given up. No more willing to argue and just giving up in the middle of a discussion. Fortunately, that was all over now and his parents were happily bickering again. If she would fight with his dad, she would fight for herself.

Following the crease in his mother's forehead with his eyes, he noticed tracks down her skin that showed the path tears had recently taken. Suddenly aware of whose room he was sitting in, he wondered if she had cried over his sister. Jason's expression now mirrored his sleeping mother's as he frowned in worry.

While tears were more common than they had been before Iran and finding his sister, crying herself to sleep wasn't something Jason had seen.

Deciding to let her sleep undisturbed, Jason turned his back to his Doritos and soda. He would slip downstairs to watch some TV. He was aware his mother would be embarrassed if she knew how he had studied her in her sleep. His finger ghosted the top of his soda can and he glanced back at his mother.

As he reached for the soda can without taking his eye off his mother, his mind misjudged the distance and the can toppled from its perch on the table to the floor. Jason flailed his hands out gracelessly to stop the can's decent, knocking the Doritos off as well. He closed his eyes and waited for the loud noise that would surely wake his mother.

Jason opened his eyes as his mother was yanked from her sleep into wakefulness. He opened his mouth in apology, but was silenced by a small, rectangular picture frame that fell to the floor. It was a photograph. His mother had apparently been clutching it to her chest as she slept and her sudden jolt upright at the sound of his accident momentarily freed it. Jason followed his mother's gaze.

It was a photograph of his sister from when she was younger.

His mother reached for the photo, but Jason was close and reached for the frame. He knew how they left things before Lauren left. His sisters had fought with her and he knew how devastated his mother had been, though she had pretended to be fine.

He just didn't now how much it had affected her until now.

Jason couldn't identify the emotion crossing her face as she tried desperately to mask it. But she was failing. Fear.

"Mom?"

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth sat fully up now and swung her feet to the floor. She looked anywhere but at him. She was more fully awake and gaining back control of her features lost in the suddenness of their situation.

"Yes. I'm sorry. You were just sleeping so deeply and I didn't mean to wake you." His apologetic face and the timbre of his voice calmed her down and stopped her from shutting him out.

He noticed a crack in her armor and a sadness filling her blue eyes. She would slowly start to open up, so he pushed for more.

"Is something wrong with Lauren?" Worry filled his voice as he awaited his mother's answer.

"Oh, no. Not that I'm aware of." She got up from the bed and her arms drew her son into a hug before pulling his back and looking him in the eyes. Her hands were firmly on his shoulders. "I just miss her."

Jason blew out a slow breath and realized his mother was diverting her eyes once again.

"Have you even talked to her since she left?" His sister left two days ago and life had gone on as usual. Things had been pretty busy and he wondered it it was actually hectic or if his parents just threw themselves in their work.

A tiny smile formed on her lips but the sadness in her eyes tinted with grief. Jason continued to gaze expectantly into her face.

"Once. She texted me she landed safely."

Jason didn't miss the way his mother spoke, as if she had to convince herself everything was alright. That her life wasn't on the verge of falling apart around her.

"Have you tried calling or texting her?" His gentle tone was almost as if careful not to upset her.

His mother stood abruptly and her voice became clipped. "I have. How about we start making dinner?"

Jason grabbed her hand as she tried to pass by him. "Mom, stop. We can order take-out later."

Elizabeth huffed as she sat and raised an eyebrow at her son. She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze and again cleared her throat. "I know it's hard for you guys, having another sister suddenly."

Jason stepped quickly to his mother's side and sat down. In a moment she pulled him into a tight hug. When she released him they sat side by side in silence for a moment, her arm still draped around his shoulders. Finally, his mother dropped her head heavily upon his shoulder and sighed.

"I always feel like I'm failing her. It's hard to feel like mother of the year with this kind of outcome."

In an instant, as if by divine intervention, Jason knew what was wrong. There was no need to ask what she was referring to. He knew his sister had basically fled from the house after the fight. The raw, vulnerable look in his mother's eyes was overwhelming and real.

"You're a great mom. I'm sorry for the way we treated her before she left." He knew he wasn't the one that had to apologize. It had been mostly his sister that fought, but he still needed her to know he was sorry.

Elizabeth nodded before getting up. It was about time they finally had dinner and she was glad her son was here with her.

At least one of her kids wasn't avoiding her.

Henry lay in his bed wide awake, He glanced at his clock. It was 2:16AM.

After remembering to check up on the kids, he had finally fallen into bed and a restless sleep just before midnight.

But now, he lay awake listening to the sounds coming from outside. A glance to his left made him realize he wasn't the only one awake. He found his wife staring up at the ceiling.

"Couldn't sleep?" He turned to face her, though she lay as still as before. The movement of her chest and occasional blinking kept him from worrying as he waited for her to answer.

"I'm scared." She wasn't even sure what she was scared of anymore. Maybe it was the fear of losing her daughter again, or maybe it was the fear of a broken family. "Did you see how angry Alison was? How distant Stevie is?"

"They just need time." His arm was draped over her stomach and she finally looked him in the eye as she turned her body to face him.

"Now she'll never feel like I'm her mother or that she's a part of the family." She sighed and he realized they were no longer talking about Alison and Stevie.

"You're wrong."

"Am I?"

Henry sat upright. He was having a hard time enough convincing his daughter she waa part of the family, let alone reassuring his wife she was a great mom. "You are, but we can't continue like this."

Elizabeth now sat up as well, worried about the sudden mood change from her husband.

"As soon as she's back, we've got to have a conversation. Not just with her, but with all four kids."

The following day, Henry called his wife with a disturbing message.

"He broke his nose?" She nearly yelled it, causing her staff to look up from their work. She got up and walked to the other end of the room to continue her conversation.

"It seems our son has a great right hook."

"So what instigated it, do we know?" She glanced over at her staff and they all looked down and pretended they weren't listening.

"Preston called you a liar."

She sighed as she was reminded once again of how much her work impacted the lives of her kids. "I assume we have a meeting with the dean?"

"Yeah, later today. Can you make it?"

"I will make sure I'm there." She hung up and returned to her meeting. After rescheduling a few things, she managed to be there on time.

"I'm sorry for breaking your nose." Jason told Preston once they were seated across from him and his parents.

"That's not an apology we can accept." The dean speak and Henry cut in.

"He was defending his mother's honor, that's got to count for something." He was near ready to start a fight, but his wife's hand on his leg calmed him down.

"His mother?" The dean now looked confused from Jason, to Preston. "Mr Mccord, this fight wasn't about your wife."

Elizabeth glanced to her right, but Jason avoided her eye contact. "What?"

"You know what," Jason started as he got up. "I'm not apologizing."

He walked towards the door and both parents got up as well, confused as to what was going on.

"If you walk out that door, we will be forced to expell you." The dean warned him, but he left anyways. He was followed closely by his parents, but they didn't catch up with him until he reached his locker.

"What was that?" Henry asked, watching his son clearing out his locker. "What started the fight, Jason?"

"He did call mom a liar." He protested. He had called his mother a liar, but it had been about an hour before the fight.

"But?" His mother raised her eyebrows as she pressed for more. He sighed because he knew he had to tell them the truth.

"One of Preston's older brother's was at a party last week." He stared down at his feet. "They ended up going clubbing and took pictures."

"So?" Henry wasn't sure why this would cause a fight.

"There were pictures of a girl and it wasn't anything bad, but they were saying all these disgusting things about her. Objectifying her."

His parents still didn't understand what was going on, until everything clicked in Henry's mind. He placed his hand on his son's shoulder and squeezed a little.

"Who was the girl?" He asked, mostly because he wanted to hear it from him, but he was fairly sure he knew who it was.

"Lauren." Jason admitted and he felt himself being pulled in a hug by his mother.

"I'm proud of you, Jase." She kissed his head and pushed back. After everything, it meant a lot to her that he was defending his sister. Between the fight and her leaving, she was glad at least one of her kids still cared.

"For breaking his nose?"

"Well, no." She put her arm around him as he finished clearing out his locker and guided him to the exit. "For defending your sister's honor."

 **TBC**


	24. Chapter 24: Return

Elizabeth didn't blame her daughter for wanting to get away. They should've handled her arrival better and she intended to do a better job as soon as she returned.

For now, she had texted her a few times and only got a simple reply. Between the time difference and her work, she could never find a moment to video call her. She missed her daughter dearly.

About a week after Lauren left, Henry took his three kids to a conference. Elizabeth couldn't make it due to her work, but she sent the rest of her family anyways.

Everything was going fine until a girl ran in. An explosion ripped through the room. The blast echoing for miles around.

Henry opened his eyes. Where was he? This wasn't his house or the office. It was a large room, the walls were broken apart and charred, broken pipes and metal were bent outwards, splintered pieces of burnt wood were strewn about

Think Henry

Fuzzy images flashed before his mind's eye.

A bomb.

It had been an inspiring event. He'd enjoyed listening to the speaker, with his kids.

Oh God, his kids.

Henry moved to sit up and find his kids but was met with sheer agony from his chest area. Ignoring the pain, Henry lifted himself off the ground and looked around. The ringing in his ears started to fade and was replaced by screaming, and panic.

His head snapped to the right as a small sound echoed across the room and caught his attention.

"Dad!"

Henry took in the sight of his kids and smiled weakly. They looked frightened but other than that, unharmed. They were okay. They were alive.

"They're transferring Henry to the hospital now. They're waiting for you downstairs to take you to him." Blake explained, and Elizabeth was thankful for the gesture. He always seemed to think ahead and knew what she needed. She rushed down and was on her way to find out more about her husband's condition.

She gave a small sound that sounded like a whimper, as she rushed to the glass separating her from the man she loved. She placed her hand on the glass, a painful reminder that she couldn't be there to support him.

She noticed he slowly opened his eyes and she smiled through her blurry vision as tears appeared in her eyes. She was trembling but keeping a stiff stance. However, she refused to meet his gaze as she stared at his injuries, not being able to keep her thoughts from wandering what could've happened.

A few hours later he woke up in the hospital, once again remembering earlier events. A blonde figure on the other side of the door made him smile. His wife had come to see him, and he could tell she was scared and worried, but she was a soldier. A brave soldier. Her eyes were filled with tears threatening to spill over, but he knew she was too proud to let them fall.

He didn't like seeing his wife like this. He couldn't get her to meet his eyes. Instead her eyes were trained on the machines around him. He saw the phone on the table next to his bed and picked up the horn.

It fell silent, and oddly enough, Henry didn't feel that it was awkward at all. He was glad to have his wife for emotional support.

"Hi." He said, and he knew she heard him because she would finally look at him.

"Hey." She replied with a shaky voice, the sound of his voice was comforting but not yet reassuring. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay." Henry promised her, and she looked less shaken up. He then hesitated for a second before asking his next question, unsure if he wanted to know the answer to it. "The kids?"

She smiled at the worry he had for them, always putting others before himself.

"They're alright. I'm going to see them in a minute." She explained. "I love you." She whispered softly.

He could tell he'd scared her with his actions and the thought of leaving his family behind, broke his heart.

"I love you too."

Elizabeth rushed to the chapel where she was told she would find her kids. She found all three kids waiting around and sighed of relief when she noticed they were alright. Alison was the first one to see her mother and she ran to hug her, needing the comfort of her mother.

The following day, they were finally allowed to go in their dad's room, except he had to stay overnight. After a few hours, Elizabeth figured she should take the kids home. She made a promise to Henry that she would be back in the morning to pick him up.

After several hugs from his kids and kisses from his wife, he was alone again in his room. He was exhausted and figured the sooner he fell asleep, the sooner he would be home with his family.

He had asked Elizabeth if she had called Lauren. It was all over the news and he didn't want her to hear it from the TV. However, she hadn't been able to reach her, but she would keep trying.

He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, not noticing the person outside his room, or the fact that they took place on the chair near his bed.

Henry woke up when he heard someone next to him. He opened his eyes and saw a nurse checking the tubes and machines connected to him.

"What time is it?" He spoke softly, still not fully awake.

"Three-thirty a.m." She told him, and his eyes scanned the room. They landed on a familiar figure asleep in the chair facing his bed. Legs curled underneath her and her head resting in her hand as she slept. A hospital blanket half draped over her lower body.

"She's been here since last night, refused to leave." The nurse saw him look and he smiled as he recognized the stubbornness. She was just like her mother. "You should get some sleep."

The nurse walked out, and Henry stared at his daughter. The suitcase was next to the chair and he figured she came here straight from the airport. He wondered if Elizabeth knew she was here.

He tried to get some sleep, but he was thirsty. His hand moved to get the cup from the table, but he accidentally knocked over the water bottle next to it. It fell on the floor with a loud thud and he saw the girl slowly waking up from the noise.

"Sorry." He apologized when he saw her eyes open.

"Hey." She smiled, not noticing his apology. She moved the chair closer to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but alright." He told her, and she nodded. She now saw the water bottle on the ground and picked it up. Luckily the cap was still on. Handing her dad the cup he had been reaching for, she looked around to find a clock. "It's three-thirty."

"Can I get you anything?"

"No thank you. When did you get here?" He asked as he took a sip and sat the cup back down.

"Last night. I took the first flight I could." The traveling had made her tired and slowly last night's events had come back to her.

"Does Elizabeth know you're here?"

"Everything went so fast and hectic. I was planning on calling her as soon as I landed, but my phone died." She pointed at her phone on the ground, being charged on the other side of the room. "I must have fallen asleep, but I'll send her a text, so she knows as soon as she wakes up."

"You didn't have to come back for me." He knew she had chosen an extra week in the Netherlands to get some space. An extra week she didn't get because he got hurt and she rushed back.

"Yes, I did. It's what you do for family." He smiled at the comment and felt his eyes starting to get heavy. He didn't want to sleep. He didn't want to wake up and find his daughter being here was just a dream.

"Go sleep. I'll still be here in the morning." She told him, and he nodded with closed eyes. Not soon after he drifted into a peaceful sleep.

Lauren got up and shot her mother a text. 'I'm at the hospital. x'

She took out a textbook and started reading. No matter how tired she was, the time difference and jet lag were messing her up and she couldn't sleep.

Elizabeth awoke early the following morning to get ready to bring her husband home.

Before getting up, she checked her phone. One message caught her attention. Her daughter was at the hospital? Was she alright? She couldn't bare another family member being hurt right now. She quickly shot her a text.

'Are you alright? Please text me.'

She didn't want to wait and pressed call after sending the text. It went to voicemail and she got up feeling frustrated. She had been worried about Henry and now she was worried sick about her daughter as well.

Trying to stay positive, she got dressed and tried calling her again later.

Several hours after falling asleep, Henry woke up again and looked to find his daughter. He was surprised when he didn't see her, or her suitcase and he wondered if he had dreamed it. He saw something light up and noticed her phone on the floor, still charging. He smiled as he realized it had been real and a few minutes later she returned with her suitcase.

"Hey." He smiled, "For a moment I thought I'd dreamed you being here."

"Sorry, I just wanted a change of clothes." She sat down on the chair again. "I heard you can go home today?"

"Yes. What time is it?"

"It's seven-thirty." She told him, and he closed his eyes. He had no intention of sleeping again, but before he knew it, he was sound asleep.

The next time he woke up, she wasn't in the room either. This time, however, her suitcase was in the corner and he noticed a piece of paper on the bed near his hand.

'Wasn't a dream, I just went downstairs to get something to eat.'

He smiled at the note and he was glad he had another reminder she was actually here. He wondered how long he had been sleeping for. He could use some breakfast as well.

The door opened, revealing his wife. She rushed to him and they shared a kiss as she sat down on the chair. "Good morning."

"Hey." He smiled, trying to appear better than he actually felt.

"Did you sleep okay?" She asked and after many years of marriage, he knew something was bothering her.

"What's wrong?" He asked, ignoring her question.

"Lauren texted me last night she was at the hospital and I can't get ahold of her." She was starting to panic and near ready to call her Dutch contacts to have them find out what was going on.

Henry realized the poor choice of words of his daughter and was surprised his wife hadn't noticed the suitcase yet.

"Babe-" He tried to assure her, but she held up her hand.

"I know, I know. She's probably okay, but Henry I can't have two people I love, hurt." She grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

"Babe-" He tried again, but this time interrupted by the door. He saw his daughter push her back against the door to open it while balancing a tray with food, drinks and her wallet in her hands.

"I come, serving breakfast." Lauren spoke, turning to face her dad only to find her mother in the room as well. "Oh, hi."

Elizabeth was too stunned to move for a moment, before jumping into action and walking over to her daughter. Lauren had in the mean time placed the tray at the edge of the bed and hugged her mother.

"I was so worried." Elizabeth whispered as she pulled her daughter even closer.

"Worried?"

Elizabeth finally pulled away and looked to see if she could find any injuries. "You texted you were at the hospital and then you didn't pick up your phone."

"I meant I was here at the hospital and my phone has been charging all night." She pointed to the corner of the room. "I had it on silent mode since I'm at the hospital."

"So, you're okay?"

"Yes." A sigh of relief came from her mother as she pulled her into another hug.

"The nurse told me if you eat, you can go home." Lauren told her dad in the mean time. She picked up the tray and placed it on the table which Elizabeth wheeled over his bed.

There was a cup of coffee on there as well and he was glad, but also confused, they had given it to him. His joy was short-lived as Lauren picked up the cup and her wallet and he realized it had been for her.

"How did you get here?" Elizabeth asked as Henry quietly ate. Lauren explained she had taken the first flight after she heard the news. How her phone died half way through the flight and when she got here, she had fallen asleep before texting.

"I'm sorry I wasn't the one who told you. I tried calling." Elizabeth felt bad that she couldn't have been there for her to break the news.

"That's okay. You had more important things to focus on." Elizabeth was about to argue nothing was more important than her family, when a nurse walked in.

"I see your breakfast has already been served by our new nurse." The woman gave Lauren a wink and turned to Henry. "When you're finished, we can get you discharged."

"Thank you." Elizabeth told her as the nurse left the room again. For a moment she started to think.

The last time the three of them had been in a hospital, was when Lauren was born. A day that should have been joyful suddenly changed into the worst day of their lives.

She shivered as the memories from that day came back to her. The hours she had spend crying, feeling numb. The amount of times she had needed Henry to tell her he was still with her, that he wasn't going to leave her. The reassurance that he still loved her.

"I'm ready to leave." Henry told her as he put the last bite in his mouth, causing Lauren to let out a laugh.

"Next time you might want to chew." She had watched as he quickly ate, barely chewing the food. She knew he was eager to get out of here.

"I'll get the discharge papers." Elizabeth whispered, trying to control her voice. The sudden change in mood didn't go unnoticed by either two and Henry was the one who knew what it was about.

"Is she okay?" Lauren asked as she watched her mother close the door behind her.

"Last time we were with you in the hospital, we didn't get to take you home with us." Henry explained, having had the exact same feelings as his wife.

Lauren nodded, unsure of how to reply. She threw her empty cup in the bin and got up to get her stuff together. As she took her phone from the charger, she noticed the several missed calls from her mother this morning and the texts she had sent.

Elizabeth returned with a nurse and a wheelchair. She helped Henry sit down and looked around for anything that she should take home. Henry's sweater was at the end of the bed and she placed it in his lap.

Lauren put on her jacket and grabbed her bag and suitcase. The three of them walked out of the room and she felt nervous. She hadn't been back, nor talked to her siblings, after their fight before she left. A fight that was still vivid in her memory. She knew she had to face them some day, but part of her wished it would have been a few more days.

She saw her mother glance over to her every now and then as if to make sure she was actually here, and she remembered what her Henry had told her.

"I guess us leaving the hospital together is another first."

Elizabeth smiled as they waited in front of the elevator. She took her daughter's hand for a moment. "Better late than never."

TBC


	25. Chapter 25: Will

After the drive home, Elizabeth helped Henry inside while Lauren stayed behind to get her suitcase. The three kids rushed to their dad's side when they heard him come home, careful not to hurt him.

They helped him to the couch and Elizabeth waited for Lauren to come in. "Do you have everything?"

Leaving the suitcase and bag in the hallway, they made their way over to the rest of the family.

"Hey." Stevie said surprised as she noticed her sister standing next to her mom. She jumped up to hug her and Lauren was relieved at least one of her siblings was glad she was back.

"Welcome back." Alison smiled, not leaving her dad's side. It wasn't because she didn't want to hug her sister, but more of the fact she didn't want to leave her dad.

"I thought you had another week in the Netherlands?" Stevie asked as Lauren sat down in a chair. Lauren explained to her siblings how she rushed over here, just like she had done to her parents.

"Does anyone want something to drink?" Elizabeth asked but everyone shook their heads. Lauren got up and followed her mother to the kitchen. She started making coffee and noticed the questioning gaze from her mother.

"I slept three hours in the last forty-eight hours." She commented. It had been evening when she heard about the bomb and from there on, she had been going non stop. Trying to find a way to get to the US as fast as possible. Her worry had kept her up throughout the plane journey and she had only slept three hours at the hospital.

"You can lay down if you want." Elizabeth suggested, worried about the exhaustion she noticed on her daughter's face.

"That's okay."

She gave her kids an hour with their dad before she told him he should be in bed. Hesitantly, he got up and walked with his wife upstairs. Stevie and Alison started lunch while Jason and Lauren stayed behind. Lauren noticed how Jason examined every movement his dad made. As if to determine in how much pain he actually was.

"He's going to be okay." She told him as she got up and took place next to him on the couch.

"This time." He mumbled, turning to face her when his dad was out of sight.

"There won't be a next time." She tried to comfort him. She could see how much the situation had upset him.

"How can you be sure? They promised us the same thing after mom was in Iran." Jason argued.

"We can't be, but they will always fight to come back to you."

Elizabeth had helped him into the bed and she waited for him to sleep. Squeezing his eyes shut as hard as he could for a second, he opened his eye to find her staring at him with a very evident pain in her eyes. Unaware of what else to say or do, he gestured for her to come to on the bed beside him.

He gave her a pleading look when she hesitated, and smiled when she finally gave in. She sat on the side of the bed, careful not to hurt him.

Henry sighed.

Gathering his strength, he removed the blanket from his lower half, and shifted his entire body so she could lay next to him. He felt her tense up as he wrapped his arms around her waist, but after a moment she relaxed. They remained in this position for what seemed like hours, which in reality was only a few minutes before Henry spoke again.

"You won't hurt me."

Elizabeth let out an exhausted sigh in defeat. She knew there was no way of getting out of staying with him, though truthfully, she really didn't want to leave anyways. She was just scared of hurting him.

Henry's arm was wrapped protectively around Elizabeth's waist, her body close to his, she rested contently as she dozed to the rhythmic sound of Henry's heartbeat.

Lauren wanted to unpack before lunch, so she took her suitcase upstairs. She noticed her parent's door open and peek around the corner. Her parents were sound asleep in each other's arms and she smiled at the sight. It had been an exhausting few days for all of them. She quietly closed the door and went downstairs. She would unpack later since she didn't want to wake them.

"Is mom coming for lunch?" Alison asked as she saw her sister come back down.

"No, they're asleep." Lauren replied, and they ate together.

"How was it being back in the Netherlands?" Stevie asked, trying to show an interest. No one had talked about what had happened before her sister left, yet. She didn't want to make things more uncomfortable.

"Really nice. I got to see some of my friends and of course did the exam. The results should be out soon."

"Do you think you passed?"

"I hope I did." Lauren laughed. "What about here? Did I miss anything?"

"Not really." Stevie told her, and Lauren realized they had been there when the bomb had gone off.

"Are you guys okay? I mean you where at the conference."

"There was so much blood." Jason whispered as he stared at his food. A silence fell, and Stevie wanted more positivity. After all, their dad was home and feeling alright.

"But dad's back and we'll all be okay." Stevie told her.

"You can come down, you know." Alison said, and the other three kids turned around to find their mom on the stairs, watching them.

"I was just enjoying seeing you all together." She told them as she continued down the stairs. She wrapped her arms around Lauren and Jason while Stevie and Alison jumped in to join the hug. Finally, her babies were all in her arms again.

"I'm done." Stevie put her plate in the sink and moved upstairs. Lauren quickly followed her.

"Are you okay?" She walked into her sister's room and leaned against the now closed door. "You are allowed to feel things."

"The truth is, I-" Stevie felt her sister sit down next to her on her bed. "I don't know as long as I was worrying about how everyone else was feeling I didn't- I didn't have to think about how I was feeling. It's just hitting me all at once. And part of me thinks if I don't talk about it than I don't have to deal with it. Which I've had enough psychology to know isn't true."

"It's okay to prioritize yourself. To put yourself first sometimes."

"It's just all of a sudden everything is dark and serious because of what happened." Stevie wasn't quite sure how to deal with that. After Iran she had been fine, going non-stop. Finally, she had reached her breaking point.

"I know you feel the burden of taking care of Jason and Alison, but don't let it be at the cost of yourself."

"Protecting them is my natural instinct." Stevie sighed, dropping her head in her hands.

"That doesn't mean you don't get to feel things." Lauren lay an arm around her sister and was surprised to find her lean against her. She lay her head against Stevie's and waited for her to pull away, but she never did.

"I'm glad you're my sister." Stevie started, "I'm sorry for the way we treated you before you left."

"I deserved it." Lauren spoke, and Stevie shot up, shaking her head.

"No, you didn't. We were upset with mom and dad, not you. You are a part of this family, you know, that right?" Stevie felt the immediate worry for her sister.

"Sure." Lauren told her unconvincingly and she removed her hand from Stevie's back. "I'm here if you want to talk."

"Same goes for you." Stevie watched her sister walk out and closed her eyes. Until now she hadn't been able to see things from her point of view. Completely oblivious to the feelings her sister was struggling with.

The day passed by Elizabeth in a haze. Every now and then she checked up on Henry and the kids. It wasn't until she lay next to a sleeping Henry that night, that she could finally get things in order. After hours of tossing and turning, she moved into a restless sleep.

The following morning, everyone was getting ready for school. Henry was sitting downstairs as he watched his family interact with each other.

"Did Elizabeth leave already?" Lauren asked him, grabbing his attention.

"Hmm?" He stared at her, "She's upstairs."

Henry got to eat breakfast but was soon ordered back in bed by Alison and Stevie.

"Good morning." Elizabeth said cheerful as she walked into the kitchen.

"Morning." Stevie said before rushing out the door.

"You okay?" She asked Lauren. The girl was lingering as if wanting to say something.

"I was wondering- if it's not too much trouble- can you give me a ride to the library?" Lauren asked, and Elizabeth wondered if she actually found it that hard to ask them for anything. Come to thing of it, her daughter was yet to ask for anything for that matter.

"Of course." Elizabeth told her, not wanting to ask why. She was afraid that would seem as if she didn't want to give her a lift.

"It's just I left my public transport card in the Netherlands and it's being send here, but it'll take a few days." Lauren explained. It was the truth, but she was also having a hard time paying for school. She was in desperate need for a job and therefor was excited she had an interview soon.

"Not a problem. How long do you think you'll be staying? I could pick you up."

"I'm not sure yet."

"How about you text me when you're ready to go and I'll see if I can get away as well." Elizabeth filled her to-go cup with coffee as she kissed Jason and Alison goodbye.

"You don't have to do that."

"I could use a day off early anyways." She walked out, followed by her daughter. She dropped her off at the public library before continuing to her office.

She had to restrain herself from calling Henry every five minutes, but still ended up calling him several times throughout the day.

At five-thirty she decided to call it a day and called her daughter. She hadn't texted, and she wondered if the girl had been at the library all day long.

"Lauren."

"Hey, are you home yet?" Elizabeth asked as she took the elevator down.

"Not yet, but I can go if you need something?" Lauren wondered why she was calling.

"No, I just wanted to know if you needed a ride back."

"That'd be great."

"I'll be there in fifteen." Elizabeth hung up and told her detail where to go.

She found her daughter in front of the building. She hadn't noticed the cars pull up yet and Elizabeth took a moment to look at her. She was so grown up. She looked exhausted, but what made her the saddest was the fact that she looked lost.

It wasn't the first time she had seen the look on her daughter's face. The youngest blonde tried to mask it, but when she thought no one was paying attention, she dropped that mask.

She opened the door and Lauren now noticed the cars. The lost look was no longer on her face and Elizabeth sighed. She wished she would be honest with them for once. Let them in.

"Thank you for picking me up." Lauren smiled as she got in.

"No problem. I'm happy to give you a ride anytime."

The drove in silence until they reached the house. Lauren was the first one to get out and noticed a man coming towards them. She figured it was just a neighbor until he stopped near her and dropped his jaw.

"O my god." He whispered, and Elizabeth now got out as well. He took a few steps towards her and tried to pull the girl in a hug, but Lauren quickly shot back, towards her mother.

"Don't touch me." Lauren spoke and moved to her mother for both comfort and the need to protect her. She wasn't sure why her mother's detail wasn't doing anything.

"It's okay." Elizabeth spoke as she placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "This is Will. My brother."

The man she now knew as Will, hugged her mother and she knew it was alright. She could trust him.

"Sorry. I was just overwhelmed all of a sudden." Will told her and he stretched out his hand. "Will."

"Lauren." She introduced herself.

"You always did have impeccable timing." Elizabeth mumbled as she realized what a coincidence it was that he showed up at the exact same moment. "Let's go inside."

"Uncle Will!" Stevie cheered as she saw him enter the house and hugged him tightly, followed by the other two kids.

"Hey kiddos." He smiled.

"Are Annie and Sophie with you?" Stevie asked, and he shook his head no.

"Do you have pictures?" Alison asked, and he pulled out his phone. They sat down and watched the pictures.

"Where's Henry?" Will asked as Elizabeth returned from upstairs.

"Asleep." She sighed as she sat down at the dinner table with them.

"How is he doing?"

"Alright." Elizabeth spoke, and they started eating. It didn't take long before the Adams siblings were in an argument and dinner mostly consisted of Will and Elizabeth fighting.

After dinner, Stevie and Alison left to check up on their dad while Jason sat down for video games and Elizabeth was in the kitchen cleaning up. That left an awkward silence between Will and Lauren.

"I'm sorry about earlier." He told her. He never meant to give her the idea he was attacking her.

"That's okay. I just didn't know who you were."

"Well just so you know, I'm the fun uncle." She laughed at the statement.

"Noted."

"Your mom has told me a lot about you." Will started, "That and I read the news sites sometimes."

"All good things I hope."

"Are you settling in alright?"

"Yeah."

"The resemblance is remarkable." He couldn't stop looking at her. Something she had noticed throughout dinner as well. "You look so much like your mom when she was your age."

"What was she like? As a teen, I mean." Lauren was curious to find out more about her parents.

"Smart, stubborn and annoying." Will joked and Elizabeth walked in just in time to hear it.

"I was not the annoying one." She laughed as she sat down next to her daughter.

"She was." Will mouthed even though Elizabeth could see it.

"Don't listen to him." Elizabeth told her, and she smiled at the dynamic between the two. They could go from fighting to being best buddies in 0.2 seconds.

"Sorry, I have to be on Elizabeth's side." Lauren laughed, and Will's smiled disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"Elizabeth?" He asked, not sure why his niece wasn't calling her mom. He saw his sister shake her head slightly as if not to bring up the subject. "Well, wait till you see the breakfast I will make tomorrow morning. I will have you on my side in no time."

"That's your idea? Bribe my daughter with food?" Elizabeth laughed, and Lauren was grateful he hadn't asked any questions.

"If she's anything like you, I might have a chance." He knew how much his sister loved food.

"Depends on how good your breakfast is tomorrow." Lauren got up. "I'm going to see if Henry needs anything."

Will watched the girl go upstairs, before turning to his sister. "O my God."

"I know." Elizabeth sighed before a watery smile appeared.

"I have to ask, what's with the first name-basis?" He knew she hadn't wanted him to comment on it earlier.

"She can't just start calling strangers mom and dad overnight." Elizabeth sighed, wondering if she would ever get to hear the words from her daughter.

"But you're not strangers."

"To her we are. Or at least we were."

"I'm so glad she's alive, or back." He moved a seat closer to his sister and grabbed her hand. "How are you?"

Between their fights and arguments, he always made sure she was alright and safe. After Iran he hadn't been able to see her, but he made sure to text and call.

"I don't know." She whispered, and the honest reply took him by surprise. She wasn't one to show emotion this quickly.

"Is it Henry?"

"Yes." Elizabeth started, "and Lauren. And the other kids."

"What do you mean?" He asked, and she told him everything. From the first time they met Lauren to the fight before she left. It felt nice to finally pour her heart out to someone other than her therapist or Henry. There was only so much she would tell either of them.

"Looks like there's another thing she inherited from you." He commented, and Elizabeth gave him a confused glare. "Pretending everything is fine when it isn't. I asked her earlier if she was settling in alright and she said yes, but clearly she isn't."

"It's just the other three need to adjust."

"Give them time. They'll come around."

 **TBC**


	26. Chapter 26: family

**Sorry this is late but happy holidays! I wish you and your family a safe a healthy 2019!**

After leaving her mother downstairs with Will, Lauren walked into her parents' room, expecting to find Alison and Stevie there, but apparently, they had already gone to their rooms.

"Hey." Henry spoke as he saw her in the doorway.

"I just came to see if you needed anything."

"I could use some company." He told her, shifting to the middle of the bed so she could sit down next to him. Hesitantly she sat down, careful not to hurt him.

"I didn't really get to ask; how was the Netherlands?"

"It was nice. The weather was cold, though and my exam got rescheduled a day." She realized she probably wasn't fun company. He didn't need this negativity. "Sorry. I'm complaining while you're the one on bedrest."

"There's a difference between complaining and venting. Complaining is asking for a change. Venting is getting something off your chest"

"Wow. I could've used some of your wisdom before my high school exams." She joked, and he let out a saddened laugh. He wished more than anything he could've told her been there for her graduation. For her school plays and all the milestones along the way of growing up.

He shifted his body, so their shoulders were touching. "I promise I will be there for your next graduation."

"High school graduation was a mess anyways, so you didn't really miss anything." She tried to lighten the mood. She had realized what she had said, how could the pain of watching her messy graduation even compare to the pain of losing your child? "Sorry."

"So which exams did you have again?" Henry tried changing the subject, much to Lauren's delight.

"I had social psychology, sociology, ethics and family law."

"Ethics? You're taking an ethics class?" He wondered how it hadn't come up yet.

"Yeah. After switching to online studying, I had to drop criminal psychology and chose ethics instead." Lauren rubbed her hands together nervously before she continued. "I figured what better way to understand what you do than actually take the class. And I know it's not all you do, but-"

"I think it's great." Henry eased her worry. "So do you like it?"

"Yeah, though it's also kinda hard."

"If I can help at all, let me know."

"Thank you."

They sat in silence until Elizabeth walked in. "Hey."

"I will leave you be." Lauren said, getting up. She didn't want to intrude.

"You don't have to go." She tried, but the girl was already out of the room. "Sorry."

"How are things with Will?" Henry asked, pushing himself up so he was sitting up a bit more.

"The usual. He was happy to meet Lauren." She spoke before adding, "not that happy about sleeping on the couch though."

Since Lauren had gotten the guest room, they had nowhere for him to sleep except the couch.

The following day, Will had left and things went on a usual. Henry was allowed out of bed and Alison attempted a conversation with her sister.

"Sorry to interrupt. My dad is on the phone and he would love to talk to you. I can say you're in the shower or something if you'd rather not." Henry cut in the conversation Lauren was having with Alison.

"No, that's okay." She took the phone from Henry's hands. "Hello?"

"Hi. It's Patrick Mccord. It's so nice to finally meet you even though it's over the phone."

"You too, but I'm sure we'll get a chance to meet in person."

"That would be nice." She heard him trail off as if something was wrong, but she figured that was just his personality. "Is my son treating you alright?"

"Yes. You raised him well." She laughed and heard him chuckle.

"I have a lot of stories I could tell you, proving the contrary."

"I can't wait to hear them."

"He really is a good man. Is he still around?" Patrick asked, and Lauren looked around.

"Yes, would you like to talk to him again?"

"Please. I'm glad I got to meet you."

"Next time it will be in person. Bye." She handed the phone back to Henry and resumed her conversation with Alison.

A week passed, and things slowly started to fall into place. Elizabeth was glad there was starting to be structure, until one Tuesday morning. Blake had rushed in to tell her Henry was on the phone. She hurried home and found him in the bedroom, noticeably upset.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered as she pulled him in a hug.

"Me too."

"I called Stevie and she's on her way home. I figured we should tell Alison and Jason once they get home. Did you tell Lauren yet?" Elizabeth asked, not pulling away from his embrace yet.

"No. She went to the city this morning to study, I think." Henry told her as she pulled back and continued packing.

"I'll call her in a minute." She told him gently and placed a hand on his arm.

An hour later, Stevie and Alison had started packing while they waited for Jason and Lauren to get back. The front door opened, revealing the both of them.

"I'm home." Jason yelled, throwing his bag in the corner. Neither of them knew what was going on yet.

"Hi, come sit." Elizabeth said as they walked into the kitchen.

"What's going on?" Lauren asked concerned.

"Grandpa Patrick passed away this morning." She told them and waited mainly for Jason's reaction since Lauren didn't know him. Tears welled up in his eyes but stayed put. Elizabeth put her arm around him for a moment before footsteps interrupted. Henry walked down, and Jason was the first one to jump up and give him a hug. Jason pulled away and left to go upstairs. Lauren took his place in Henry's arms.

"I'm so sorry." She said, and Henry nodded.

"Thank you."

Lauren figured she should start packing as well, but Elizabeth stopped her. "Wait."

She turned around on the stairs and waited for her mother to speak, "We don't want to subject you to meeting the rest of the family if you're not ready. We understand if you'd rather stay home."

"The least I can do for you is support you. My issues are not important right now. Besides, I have to meet them some day anyways." Lauren smiled, and Henry nodded thankful.

That being said, she was anxious about meeting them. Will had liked her but that didn't mean Henry's side of the family would. From the brief conversation she'd had with her siblings about them, they didn't seem too fond of newcomers. Stevie had explained to her how Maureen never fully accepted Elizabeth into the family because of the change. She feels like Elizabeth drove a wedge between their dad and his three siblings.

Her anxiety only grew as they drove off. She didn't necessarily need their approval. However, she didn't want her dad to have to choose between his siblings and her. But what if they didn't like her? If they didn't accept her? She finally had a family and deep down she wanted them to like her.

Foster families came and went. She didn't need them to like her because she knew she would never stay anywhere for too long anyways. What was the point? No need to get attached to someone you knew you would be leaving soon. But this was her family. People she wouldn't get a second chance with. No do-overs. No moving on to the next one if she messed up.

Once they reached the street, she felt Alison grab her hand. She hadn't even realized it was shaking. She gave her sister a grateful smile before exiting the vehicle. Alison was the first one to greet her aunt, followed by Elizabeth, Jason and Stevie.

She felt like a six-year-old girl and the need to hide behind her mother's legs. Pushing her fear of rejection down, she got out as well and waited next to the car. She watched as her dad hugged his sister and everyone started unpacking the car.

"You must be the new daughter." Maureen said as she walked towards her. "Maureen."

"I'm Lauren." Lauren shook her hand and was glad when her aunt moved on to talk to Henry again.

She was surprised to find her mother walking towards her and placing a kiss somewhere on her head. "I'm proud of you." She whispered, and Lauren wondered why she was proud. She was near passing out from anxiety and hadn't even met the entire family yet.

They walked in together and she was glad the awkward introductions were out of the way quickly. The kids scattered, and she followed Alison to then den to watch TV. She wasn't really in the mood for a walk and figured the two nieces might want a moment to talk.

The day passed by slowly and she was glad she got to spend it mostly with her new nieces and nephews. They didn't ask any questions and were invested in the movie they were watching. She didn't feel like telling her life's story anyways.

Every now and then she would check up on one of her parents to see if she could do anything. She was in the kitchen, filling up her glass when she ran into Erin. Taking her by surprise, she accidentally ran into her.

" _Kut_." She let out as water spilled on the floor and Erin raised her eyebrow.

"What?" She didn't understand what the girl said, and Elizabeth smiled as she had seen what happened.

"She swears in Dutch, so we don't understand her." Elizabeth used a cloth to wipe away the few drops of water that Lauren had spilled.

Lauren was surprised her mother had realized because she had been doing that. She rarely ever swore but when she did, she did it in Dutch, so no one would understand her.

Elizabeth saw the confusion and grinned. "Yeah, I noticed."

"Sorry."

"That's very effective. I should learn a new language, so I can swear in front of the kids." Erin joked.

"I'd be happy to teach you some in Dutch." Lauren smiled, glad things weren't awkward.

"I might hold you to that." Erin walked out, leaving Lauren alone with her mother.

"Are you holding up okay?" Elizabeth placed the cloth back on the kitchen counter and filled a glass for herself.

"Yeah. What about you and Henry?"

"I think it's good they have some time as a family to process."

"Babe?" They heard Henry call and Elizabeth left to go to the living room.

It wasn't until the following morning that she got to witness the first mccord-sibling fight. They were watching TV once again when they heard Maureen yell.

"No, you're already passed this. You and Elizabeth breeze into own, visiting us on your book tour, waving to us from the motorcade. Just don't think that puts you in charge now, just because she can put the funeral on her credit card!"

"What's this now?" Shane cut in. It was the first time he heard about this.

"It was just a temporary fix. I'm just trying to help." Elizabeth tried to explain, and Lauren peeked around the corner with Jason and the others. She'd never seen this side of her mother before. Usually she would create a force and fight back.

"Trying to one up all of us like usual. You know what we call her." Maureen mumbled, and Lauren barely made it out.

"Queen Elizabeth." Elizabeth whispered with a defeated tone and Lauren thought about the irony for a moment. She had been so worried about them not liking her, never did she imagine she might end up not liking them. The way they treated her mother was unfair and was glad Henry took her side.

"Queen Elizabeth. Like it's a big secret. We're not stupid, Maureen. We're not deaf." Henry yelled. It was the first time she had seen her dad actually mad. But then again, she knew how protective he was of his wife.

"Dad said you rejected him. That you treated him like a failure. He said it was the worst pain he had ever felt."

"That's enough!" Henry yelled, not wanting to hear this.

"When you took up with Elizabeth, you changed! Turning up your nose at us 'yinzers', acting like a new man with a fancy degree and a rich wife! Pretending to be better than us when clearly, you're not. I mean, your own daughter doesn't even call you 'dad'"

"You are way over the line, Maureen!" For a moment she was worried he might actually jump Maureen, but instead, he shook his head and walked out as he slammed the door behind him.

Lauren rushed through the living room and followed her dad out the door. She wanted to talk to him and truthfully, she could use a moment as well. She had forgotten about the cold weather. Putting her hands in the pocket of her sweater, she wished she had taken the time to get her jacket.

"November tenth." She said, and Henry turned around in confusion. "November tenth, 2006 I was seven, but I remember it clearly. I had gotten into a fight with my mother and things were said back and forth. It ended with me saying I hated her and her calling me a disappointment. That was the last thing I said to her. She died thinking I hated her."

Lauren blinked back the tears as Henry now walk back towards her. "She knew you loved her. It doesn't change how she saw you."

"Exactly. Your dad knew you loved him." Lauren replied, and Henry opened his mouth ever so slightly, so she explained. "I saw the look on your face. I know that look. I had it for months after they passed away."

"My first year at UVA, I was working so hard to fit in. My dad came to parents' weekend and I showed him campus and my dorm room. There was a big dinner that night, father and son thing, but I didn't tell him about it because I was afraid, he would make a scene. I took a wrong turn when we were supposed to eat off-campus and we walked into the hall." Henry started to walk, and Lauren followed him, pulling her sleeves over her hands to shield herself from the cold. "I will never forget the look on his face when he realized I was ashamed of him. That's what Maureen was talking about it."

"When he called, he told me you are a good man and you are. You have to know he loved you."

"He called to say goodbye." Henry now realized. He hadn't thought about that phone call yet.

"He called to make sure you two ended on a good note."

"I wish I could just tell him that I loved him one more time." Henry sighed, stopping in order to turn back around towards the house.

"I'm pretty sure h-he knows." Her teeth were chattering from the cold and Henry now noticed she wasn't wearing anything but her sweater.

"It's freezing outside." He said as he took off his own jacket. "Here."

"We're almost back at the house anyways." She promised him, but he wrapped it around her shoulders.

"You're just as stubborn as your mother." He smiled, and she put on the oversized, but warm, jacket.

"Thank you." She put her arm on his back and leaned slightly against him as the walk back. He put his arm around her shoulders and took in a deep breath.

"He would've loved you." He said as he looked up towards the sky.

Once they finally reached the house, Lauren stopped him for a second. "If today has thought us anything, it's to tell the people you love that you love them." She wrapped her arms around him and felt his protective arms on her back.

"I love you,"

"Love you too." Henry smiled, and they walked in to warm up. Both father and daughter were freezing after they had been outside without a jacket. Lauren had started to warm up with the jacket and Elizabeth rushed to them.

"Hey." She whispered as she kissed him, before commenting; "You're freezing."

"We both are." Henry smiled as he looked at his daughter. They walked to the kitchen together for a cup of tea to get warm.

"Maureen and the others left." She let them know and the found the three kids at the kitchen table.

"Guys, I'm sorry about earlier." He apologized as he sat down next to Jason.

"Promise we'll never end up like you and grandpa." Jason told him. He had come so close to losing his dad only a few weeks ago.

"I promise." Henry squeezed his son's shoulder and Elizabeth placed two cups on the table before sitting down as well.

"It's weird." Stevie commented. "Being here without him."

A silence fell, and Henry watched his family. It was finally complete and there was nothing Maureen could say that would change that. He had a wife he adored, three beautiful and intelligent daughters and an independent and strong-minded son. He was proud to be able to call them his kids and loved them all.

His wife, who was his rock and the love of his life, was the strongest person he had ever met. She was generous, loving and gave him the best four gifts of his life.

"I miss him." Alison admitted, ending the silence.

Elizabeth put an arm around her daughter and sighed. "I know, noodle."

 **TBC**


	27. Chapter 27: Emma

**Happy new year everyone!**

After the lovely service where Henry spoke, they had gone home. The entire drive was silent, except for the quick call Stevie made to Will. Everyone was still processing the loss. Henry held on to his wife's hand for support. Alison was sitting next to them texting some friends, while Stevie was in the back seat with Jason and Lauren.

That was until Stevie had enough of the silence. "So, how's the job hunt going?"

Both parents turn around in their seats when they heard the question. They didn't know about a job hunt.

"I went in for an interview a few days ago, but I haven't heard anything yet." Lauren replied, and Stevie shot her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, I though you'd told them."

"You're looking for a job? I thought you were finishing your studies?" Elizabeth asked confused. She wondered if she now had two kids who dropped out of school.

"I am!" She quickly eased her mother's worry. "It's just that online education is way more expensive and I'm no longer financed by the Dutch government. I also took out a small loan last year and they're rushing me to pay it back since I'm no longer even a Dutch citizen."

"Why didn't you come to us?" Henry had a slight hurt tone. "We can help you out."

"I can fix this." Lauren promised them.

"You should focus on your studies. We pay for their education too." Elizabeth looked at the other three kids in the car.

"I got it." She told them, hoping they would drop the subject.

Elizabeth turned back around and shared a look with Henry. She texted Blake to see if he could coordinate with the Dutch government to see what her depth was.

"So, did you find a job?" Stevie asked her, and Elizabeth turned back around to listen in.

"Well, I have a second meeting, but I think I might have a chance."

"What kind of job is it?" Alison now cut in.

"At café and bar thingy."

"That's cool." Alison started interrogating her sister about the potential new job.

The following night, Elizabeth awoke from footsteps in the hallway. She wondered if it was one of the kids that needed something and listened carefully. Sounds came from the bathroom and she decided to check in on whoever it was.

She found Lauren on the ground next to the toilet. Her head against the wall and her eyes closed.

"Are you alright?" Elizabeth rushed to her and kneeled down next to her. Before she could get a reply, she saw the girl moving to the toilet again and emptying her stomach.

Elizabeth held back her hair as she rubbed circles on her daughter's back. Whispering soothing sounds as they sat back against the wall again.

"It's probably something I ate." Lauren mumbled, and she felt her mother's hand brush through her hair. An action that slowly calmed her down.

After several minutes, Lauren hadn't thrown up again. "Do you want to head back to bed?" Lauren nodded, and Elizabeth helped her up.

They made a quick stop for her to brush her teeth and she know noticed how unstable her daughter was when standing up straight. She was swaying with each step she took, and Elizabeth made sure she got in her bed safely.

Tucking her in, her daughter was quickly sound asleep. She waited a few minutes and watched her daughter sleep.

"Your dad and I, we love you so much." Elizabeth whispered to the sleeping girl before walking out and heading back to bed herself.

The first thing Elizabeth did the next morning, was check up on her daughter. She was still asleep and when she moved to place a kiss on her forehead, she felt she was burning.

"Henry, I think Lauren might be getting sick." She said as she walked downstairs to find him at the breakfast table. She explained what had happened last night.

Alison and Jason joined them at the kitchen table and Henry returned his attention to his wife. "Let her sleep for a while and we'll go from there. I still have a few days off anyways."

Breakfast was quiet, and quick, and the two youngest kids were out the door within minutes. They were surprised to find Lauren walking downstairs, fully dressed.

"Good morning. Are you feeling any better?" Elizabeth asked, sharing a worried look with her husband.

"Yeah. Sorry about last night." She felt worse than last night, but she wasn't about to tell her parents that. If there's one thing she learned from her time in foster care, it was that no one liked a sick child. She would just push through it and in a few days she would feel better.

"Don't be." Elizabeth watched her take a seat at the table and couldn't stop herself from checking her daughter's forehead.

"What are you doing?" Lauren asked amused as she felt her mother's hand on her face.

"You have a temperature. You should be in bed." She pleaded, but her daughter was just as stubborn as she was.

"I'm fine. Besides, bed is the last place I want to be at the moment." Although right now, she was starting to feel tired again. She fought against it, because she didn't want to be asleep. But eventually, her illness overtook her body and she was shivering. Lauren was sure that her fever had risen but she really didn't care. Well actually she did, because the higher it went, the colder and more miserable she felt.

Elizabeth noticed the shivers and grabbed her daughter's hand. "Let's get you back to bed."

Lauren let herself be guided upstairs and Elizabeth sat down next to her for a moment. Snuggling closer to her mother, Lauren swore she would stay awake. Of course, Elizabeth's gentle breathing and general presence soon soothed her enough so that she gave in to her body's demands and fell asleep.

Lauren woke up to find herself surrounded by blankets, and yet, she found she was just as cold now as when she had fallen asleep. Shivering, she moved from one side to the other.

Lauren's troath was dry and she walked downstairs to get a glass of water. Half way down the stairs, she sat down, feeling dizzy. Henry looked up from his paper when he saw movement. When he noticed Lauren, he immediately went into over-protective mode, otherwise known as being a dad.

"Lauren, what's wrong? Are you okay?" He sat down one step below her on the stairs.

"I- I'm fine. I just felt dizzy. It's nothing, it's passed now." Lauren moved to get up, but Henry stopped her.

"You are definitely not 'fine'. How long have you been dizzy?" Henry asked with a sigh.

"All day."

"Go back to bed. I'll bring you whatever you need."

"You don't have to." Lauren protested, but Henry interrupted.

"It's called being a dad. What do you need?"

"I came down for glass of water." Lauren mumbled.

"I'll bring you some and I'll also fix you something to eat." The look on his daughter's face told him she didn't want to and he sighed. "You haven't eaten all day and you threw up last night. You need food before you pass out."

Lauren nodded and resided upstairs while Henry watched as she safely reached the top of the stairs and went to the kitchen to make some soup.

When he was done, he walked upstairs and into his daughter's room. She was now surrounded with blankets. Henry's heart broke, watching her suffer.

"Thank you." Lauren sat up, ignoring the black dots in her vision as she did. They faded after a few seconds and Henry handed her the cup of soup and placed the water on her nightstand.

Lauren didn't realized how hungry she was until she started eating the soup. It didn't take long for her to finish it and Henry was glad she had eaten something.

"I thought this might help." Henry handed her a pill and the glass of water.

"What is it?" Lauren put the pill in her mouth and just as she was about to swallow it, Henry answered.

"Tylenol." She quickly spit it out into the glass and Henry looked confused.

"Sorry, but I'm alergic. I usually take motrin." Henry took the glass from her hands and mumbled something about Elizabeth buying it on her way home, before walking out. He returned with a new glass of water which she drank grateful.

Henry left her to go back to sleep and soon Elizabeth and Stevie had returned from home, as well as Jason and Alison from school.

"How's our patient?" Elizabeth asked as she put down her bag and took off her coat.

"I almost killed her." Henry blurted out and Elizabeth dropped her coat to the floor to steady herself on the wall. She had been hoping for the answer that she was feeling better. Her worst case scenario had been that she was feeling worse. Not this.

"What?"

"I gave her tylenol, but apparently she's alergic. She spit it out just in time, but babe- how do we not know these things?" Henry sighed. It was the little things he didn't know about his daughter that bothered him the most.

"She's okay. When she's feeling better we'll make sure we get to know everything." Elizabeth wrapped her arms around her husband and let her head rest against his chest.

That evening, Lauren awoke from the smell of dinner. Her stomach was growling and she forced herself out of bed to meet her family downstairs.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Elizabeth checked her forehead as soon as she walked in the kitchen.

"Better. This smells really good." She looked at what Alison was making.

"It's spaghetti bolognaise."

"Do you want to eat something?" Elizabeth wanted her daughter to eat. She hadn't eaten much, and it started to worry her. Her worry was eased when she agreed.

"Yes, please. I'm starving." Lauren put a piece of tomato in her mouth.

"That's for dinner." Alison teased, and Lauren stuck out her tongue causing her sister to laugh.

Lauren had to keep herself from practically breathing in the food and stopped when she worried eating too much might cause her stomach to protest again.

After dinner she crawled back in bed while the others watched some TV. In the middle of texting her friends, someone knocked on her door and she saw her mother appear.

"I thought you might like some company." She sat down on the edge of the bed and Lauren moved to the side so her mother could sit next to her.

"May I ask you something?" Elizabeth rubbed her hands together nervously.

"Sure."

"Why do you find it so hard to ask for help?" She heard her daughter sigh and wondered if she was pushing too hard.

"Growing up in foster care, no one liked a sick child. Almost like you were a burden, so I guess it's a habit." She smiled awkwardly.

Elizabeth grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Can we make a promise? If you ever feel like you're a burden or that you can't be yourself, you come to us, okay? You lean on us."

"I promise. It's just that I don't want your first impression of me to be that I'm needy or demanding."

"Baby, no one looks at you and thinks you're demanding. When your dad and I look at you, we see someone who's so strong and independent."

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I don't know how to be someone's daughter or sister. I honestly wish none of this had happened."

"You regret moving in here?" Elizabeth wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer to that question. She knew she had said it before she left for the Netherlands.

"No! I hate the fact that I was taken. I hate the fact that I'm not ready to call you anything besides your first name. I hate the fact that I need to tell you about my life." Elizabeth's face told her she needed to explain what she meant before her mother thought she didn't want to be here. "It's not that I don't _want_ to tell you. It's just that you should've known these things. That you should have been there."

Elizabeth wrapped one arm around the girl's shoulder and pulled her close. "Oh baby, I know. Me too, but I'll always be thankful I got you back. I want to know everything about you and I don't care if I have to schedule a weekly girl's night for the next three years, to do that."

"Promise if I tell you everything, you won't look at me differently?"

"Nothing you can tell me is going to change the fact that I think you're amazing. And beautiful."

"May I ask something?"

"Always."

"Did you have a name?"

"A name for what?"

"For me." Elizabeth froze, and she regretted asking. "Forget I asked."

"No. It's alright. I just assumed you knew."

"When I Googled myself, there was no mention of the name." Lauren repositioned herself in her mother's arms. She heard her mother sigh before answering.

"We named you Emma."

"Emma Mccord." Lauren repeated. "I like that."

"Me too." Elizabeth whispered as she held her daughter tighter.

"I'm sorry you didn't get to name me."

Elizabeth let out a saddened laugh. "Well, I think your parents picked a beautiful name too."

"Still, I'm not carrying the name you picked for me, nor am I carrying your last name."

"Doesn't matter. What matters is that you're alive and back in my arms." Elizabeth planted a soft kiss on her daughter's head and enjoyed having her in her arms.

 **TBC**


	28. Chapter 28: Cuba

As soon as Elizabeth woke up the next morning, she got a text from Blake. Together with Henry, she had been working on resolving the debt her daughter had in the Netherlands. It was barely what they paid for one kid a year at college, but they could imagine it was a lot of money for a student. Especially since they were rushing her to pay it back.

"Do you have a minute?" Elizabeth asked as she saw Lauren join them downstairs. Everyone, except for Stevie, was already downstairs having breakfast.

"Sure." She sat down at the table and waited for her mother to continue.

"We know you said you got it, but we didn't want you to have to worry about the depth you have in the Netherlands." Elizabeth started and got an encouraging nod from Henry. "We pay for the other three their education too and this isn't even a tenth compared to what we already paid for them."

"You paid off my depth?" Lauren needed a moment to process what she had just told her. She knew her mother told her she wouldn't mind, but to actually do it was something else.

"We know we overstepped and if it really is that important to you, you can pay it back to us." Henry told her.

"But you don't have to." Elizabeth quickly added. She didn't want her daughter to think she needed to pay them back.

"Well it sure does give me more time than the six months the Dutch government gave me." Lauren smiled. "Thank you."

"Good morning." Stevie joined them downstairs and both parents figured now would be a perfect time to talk about an upcoming trip.

"So, I have to go to Cuba for a work thing, but I was thinking we could make it a family vacation."

"I can't, I have a new job." Stevie spoke as she started eating.

"You do?" Both parents were surprised this was the first time they were hearing about it.

"Yes. With the microloans program."

"I can't either." Jason informed them. "I have standardized tests."

"I can go." Alison said excited, already planning some outfits in her head.

Elizabeth looked over at their other daughter who seemed deep in thought. Thoughts she was snapped out of quickly when she found her mother looking at her.

"Me too?" She asked, and Elizabeth pushed down the pain she felt when she realized the girl still didn't feel part of the family. That she needed to be reminded that she was one of them.

"If you want."

"Yes!" She smiled excited and it warmed Elizabeth's heart.

"Alright. Now I really have to go to the office." She kissed Henry quickly. "Bye."

The following day had been hectic, but there was one thing she was looking forward to. Alison had told her she would be coming by the office after school, so when Blake told her she was already in the office, she happily went in.

Happiness that quickly subsided when she heard her daughter complain before she had even set foot in the office.

"I'm not going to Cuba." It was the first thing she heard as she walked into her office. She found her youngest daughter behind her desk on her phone.

She sighed as she took off her jacket. "Well, good afternoon to you too, Noodle."

"Dad's still mad at me about the car and you'll be busy, so it'll just be me and him." Alison whined and swirled around in the chair.

"And your sister." She corrected her, "He is really looking forward to spending time with you."

"To lecture me on the perils of lying."

"You're being unfair."

"He's the one being unfair. Stevie can't go 'cause of her stupid Microloans job and Jason has standardized tests. Why do I have to be the only one going?" Alison got up to make room for her mother and slumped down on the couch instead.

"You won't be the only one going, Lauren is coming too."

"Like that makes it any better." Alison sighed and Elizabeth walked over to the couch. She was aware Alison was having a hard time adjusting to her new sibling.

"I'm really sorry you're feeling left out, Ali. Remember how you toured churches with dad in England? He just wants to spend time with you."

"I know, but what fun is it when he is spending most time getting to know Lauren? And I know you guys have eighteen years to make up for, but still." She felt her mother lay and arm around her shoulder.

"How can we prove to you that you are just as important as the other three?" Blake interrupted just before Alison could answer.

"Ma'am, you're needed in the White House." Blake already grabbed her coat, but she stopped him.

"Can you give us a second? I'll be right out." She waited for Blake to close the door and turned to her daughter, hoping to get a reply.

"Talk to dad, please. Tell him he's got two kids going on the trip." Elizabeth promised she would and walked out with Alison.

"She said that?" Henry asked surprised. He was packing for the trip while his wife was sitting on the bed.

"She just wants you to devide your attention." She helped him fold clothes so they fit better in the suitcase.

"I had no idea she felt this left out." He sighed as he sat down on the bed, causing it to dip.

"We have three kids who all feel like we're not paying enough attention to them and one kid who doesn't even feel part of the family." She wondered how she was supposed to raise four kids. No matter who she tried to please, it always seemed to be at the cost of another child.

"We really need to have that conversation one of these days." Henry closed the suitcase. He had done enough for today. He was tired and just wanted to sleep.

A few days later, they were on a plane to Cuba. Everyone felt a little bit of tension between Henry and Alison after she confessed to denting the car, but they pretended it wasn't there.

They had rented a beautiful old car while they left Elizabeth to work. Lauren just came along as they visited some churches until she picked up on an argument between father and daughter.

"How am I belittling anyone's beliefs? I'm taking the picture because it's beautiful." Alison tried to grab her phone, but Henry held it in a tight grip.

"You're taking it to get "likes." You're becoming someone who I don't even know." She could see he was furious, but also felt like this was getting way out of hand.

And it did.

"Then maybe you should get to know me. I'll be in the car." Alison stormed out and she moved to her dad.

"You okay?"

"Yeah." He rubbed his face, "No."

"Talk to her. I'll wait here for a minute." She told him and he walked after his daughter.

She took a moment to look around the church. Noticing a stand on the altar, she out in some money and lit a candle for her parents before standing in the doorway to see if Henry had talked to Alison yet.

"Once you grow up, things get really complicated. Today I just wanted to go back in time to our trip to England when touring churches was our thing."

"You should wake me up the next time you watch Gunsmoke. Maybe that can be our thing."

She heard her dad chuckle before agreeing. Part of her felt guilty. She knew from the beginning Alison felt left out. That she felt like her parents didn't care about her.

With her return, there was even less attention on her younger sister. Their parents spent a lot of their time getting to know her and it was at the cost of her other siblings. She knew they had eighteen years to make up for, but she never meant to take up so much space in their parents' lifes.

Henry whistled when he noticed his middle daughter waiting for them to finish their talk. She got into the backseat while Alison drove and he felt like something had changed. She was quieter and it didn't go unnoticed by him.

When he turned around, he noticed her absently staring at the scenery passing by.

"Where to?" Alison asked after a few minutes of driving.

"You girls can pick."

"We could go to a market?" Alison suggested and waited for her sister.

"Yeah, sure." She told her, and Henry wondered what happened that got her so quiet all of a sudden.

Henry watched while Alison drove around. His life had changed so much over the past few months. He had his daughter back and she was finally home.

It was hard to watch his daughter suffer in silence. For some reason she wouldn't come to them with her problems. He knew she didn't want to be a burden, but he wasn't sure how to make it clear they didn't think that.

Telling her she wasn't demanding hadn't seemed to make a difference. She still kept things in.

This wasn't the trip he had been hoping for. Fighting with Alison hadn't made it any better. All he wanted was a nice family vacation, but with two of his kids at home, it wasn't what he imagined.

He felt the car come to a stop and noticed Alison had parked the car. They got out, and in no time, Alison had grabbed her sister's hand and dragged her to a jewelry stand.

"Dad, can we get this for mom?" She held up a light blue necklace and Henry handed her some money.

"You want anything?" He asked Lauren while Alison paid.

"No. Thank you, though."

"Are you okay?" He asked bluntly. Her face formed an almost pained expression that worried Henry.

"I don't know." She bit her lip as her eyes shifted to her feet.

"Is it this trip?"

"No. Yes. I don't know." She noticed the confusion on her dad's face and sighed. She had no idea what was going on with herself either. "I'll be okay."

Alison interrupted before Henry could push for more and they drove back to the hotel.

 **TBC**


	29. Chapter 29: Home sweet home

**Sorry for the late update, but thank you all sm for all the kids reviews!**

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The following day they went to the opening of the embassy and afterwards it was already time to go home. On the flight home neither parent could stop from checking up on their daughter every now and then. She still seemed lost in thought as she watched out the airplane window.

Lauren felt like she was having her midlife crisis early, at age eighteen. She felt like she was drifting between two worlds. Her life in the Netherlands and the life she had built here. She didn't want to choose, but she had to. February was in a few months and her school would be over, and she should go back to the Netherlands.

If she were to get dual citizenship, she would have to choose between the US and the Netherlands. Between her life back home and her family here. It wasn't fair.

Whatever she did, she would end up hurting people. If she chose to stay here, her best friend and mom would be upset. They had done so much for her and she couldn't just leave them behind.

Then again, if she went back, her parents lost their daughter again. She couldn't knowingly put her parents through that again.

No matter what she did, there was no right choice.

The thoughts were swirling through her mind, as well as the reminder that this week was the anniversary of her parents' death. It would be twelve years since they passed.

Twelve years of mourning and it still hurt. No matter what, they were the people who raised her and stood by her side for the first seven years of her life.

The plane landed and the four of them went home to catch up with the two remaining family members.

After being reunited with the others, life went on as usual. The four kids were watching TV while Henry and Elizabeth talked. They knew it was about time they all talked. So, when Jason was in the kitchen getting a drink, his mom stormed into the kitchen, towards the living room.

"Come with me." She told her son and he followed her as he wondered why her face looked like she was about to go to war.

"Hey, we were watching that." Alison complained as her mother turned the TV off. All four kids were now present, and Henry walked in as well.

"Here's the deal. Your dad and I need to talk with you. We're going to sit here and we're not going to leave until we do." She sat down in one of the chairs and Henry followed her lead. He wasn't quite sure what she had in mind but figured he would let it play out for now.

"Stevie, I know you think we think you're a screw up. Ali, you don't feel like we're listening to you. Jase, you've kept yourself out of it for way too long and Lauren, we know you don't even feel like you're a part of this family, but all of this is going to change. We can talk, fight, cry, laugh, I don't care, but we have to talk." She rambled and when she was finally done, she took a deep breath.

"Are you okay?" Stevie asked, worried her mother was in the middle of a panic attack.

"No! That fight that happened before Lauren left made it clear things need to change."

Jason was the first one to speak up after a silence fell. He had watched his sister on the couch, but they didn't seem in a hurry to say anything. "So, how does this work?"

"You can share whatever you're feeling. If there's something you want to say. There are no consequences tonight" Henry now took over and hoped someone would take the first step.

"Okay," Alison was the first one to speak up. She remembered it was good to use I-statements. That was one of the things she had learned from working with the talking stick. "I feel like you guys don't draw a straight line when it comes to your kids."

Making sure to remain calm, Elizabeth spoke her next words very controlled. "Why's that?"

"You used to be way stricter with Jase and I compared to Stevie. And now it's like Lauren gets to live without any rules."

"You don't think mom and dad were strict with me?" Stevie was surprised her sister saw it that way.

"The older you get, the less control over your life I have." Elizabeth started, "We were strict with Stevie, but she's an adult now. I can't tell her what to do anymore."

"So, as I grow older you will be less strict?" Alison asked both her parents. She had never thought about it like that. Stevie was a few years older than she was. She had no idea how strict her parents had been growing up, because she had been so young.

"As much as it pains me to admit it, yes."

"Even me?" Jason asked, already excited for the days his parents wouldn't be able to ground him anymore.

"Even you, slugger." She laughed.

"Besides, with me as your role model, you can only do better." Stevie joked and heard her mother sigh.

"Stevie, your dad and I are proud of you. No, we're not ecstatic you dropped out of college, but if you're happy than we are too." She really needed her eldest daughter to hear her for once.

"I am happy."

"That's all that matters."

Henry realized they were all talking around the subject for which they were actually here. He stared at his middle daughter for a moment. She seemed lost in thought as she stared at the table in front of her and he wondered if she purposely kept quiet.

"Anything you would like to share?" He asked her, and she looked around before her eyes landed on her dad.

"It's obvious the biggest reason we're here is because of me." When her dad just kept glancing at her, she figured she would have to continue. "What do you want me to say? Am I supposed to apologize?"

She felt desperate and was aware from day one she had brought chaos to this house. She was the reason for most fights and arguments and it was wearing her out.

"Look, I know when I'm not wanted somewhere, and I'm done wasting my time and energy. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about me earlier," She told her parents before turning to her siblings. "I'm sorry you feel like your parents' attention is mostly focused on me, I really am. I'm sorry I'm an intruder in your house."

She finally sat back once her little outburst was done. When she got no reply's, she did what she was good at and got up to leave the room. To run away from confrontation.

"Stop." Her mother's voice was stern, and she stopped moving. "Sit down."

It wasn't an option, but then again it also sounded like a desperate plea. Knowing her avoiding conversations like this was one of the reasons they were here in the first place, she reluctantly sat back down.

"I know everyone was, and still is, overwhelmed by everything that happened." Elizabeth didn't like to use the word jealous, but she knew that was what everyone, especially Alison, was feeling.

"Mom, what do you feel?" Stevie turned the question back to her mother. She hoped her mother would open up, so it would be easier for everyone to talk about it.

"I'm happy our family is finally complete. I never thought this would be possible, but I had my miracle and here we are. However, I'm sad that it's tearing this family apart." She admitted, and all eyes turned to Lauren when she reacted to her mother's statement.

"That I'm tearing this family apart."

"No!" It came out louder than she had wanted, but at least her daughter seemed to hear her. "It's scary, being your mother."

Henry decided it was time he joined in and explained what his wife meant. "We have no right to tell you what to do. We can set a curfew for Stevie, or limit Alison's social media time, but that's because they recognize our authority."

"We don't want to push you away because you leave us just as easily as you came. We're scared to say to wrong things and cause you to leave." Elizabeth added, and they all awaited the reply from Lauren.

"You think I can leave you just as easily as I came? You think I haven't gotten attached?" She shook her head in disbelieve, eyes slightly widened. "When I get back from studying, I look forward to playing video games with Jason for a couple of minutes. I love talking to Alison about her fashion obsession or cooking with Stevie. I wake up way earlier than I should have just to sit at breakfast and enjoy the dynamics of this family. The teasing, sometimes bickering, and laughing. The pointless stories being told about someone's aunt's cousin's brother who may or may not be dating his teacher."

The latter was a story Alison had told one of the first mornings her sister had moved in. She was surprised to find her sister had remembered.

"Well, you're not very good at any of those games." Jason tried to lighten the mood, earning a few chuckles.

"That doesn't mean I don't enjoy it. In between you and I get to talk. Though it's rarely about anything serious, we still talk." He had no idea his sister was only playing to spend time with him.

"And I'm an absolute mess in the kitchen and I can name at least a hundredth things I would rather do than cook, but I like that I get to do it with you." She now told both her sisters before returning to her parents. "So, no, I can't just get up and leave."

"You're not an intruder." Alison whispered, slightly blown away by what her sister just admitted. She had no idea Lauren put so much effort in getting to know them.

"Yes, I am, but I'm trying really hard to fit in."

"I can teach you how to play better." Jason offered. He wasn't sure what to say, but from the smile on his sister's face he knew it had been the right thing.

"I'd love that."

"And we can do girls night." Stevie suggested.

"With take out." Alison added with a teasing tone that earned a laugh from her sister.

"What about me?" Henry asked with a playful tone. His wife would be allowed in their girls' night.

"You two can do father-daughter night." Alison told him.

"We haven't really been very interested in you, I'm sorry." Stevie apologized.

"Yeah, but we want to know everything about you." Jason agreed.

"So, are we good?" Elizabeth asked. She really hoped this talk helped.

"We're good." All kids agreed, and she sighed with relief. She was glad all four kids were on board again.

"If I'm going to share everything about me, I want to know everything about you too." Lauren told her family and they all nodded. It was only fair that if they made her share, they would too.

"Let's start with Jason." Stevie teased, "You still haven't told us about the girl."

"And I'm not going to." Jason threw a pillow at her sister and Stevie laughed.

"The only downside of getting expelled; long distance relationships." Alison joined her sister's torment of their brother.

"What now?" Lauren looked around surprised. She knew Jason switched schools, but her mother had told her it was because he didn't like it anymore. Not because he got expelled. She felt oddly betrayed that none of her siblings had told her either.

"Ali." Elizabeth sighed, but she knew she wouldn't get out of this one anymore.

"I got expelled for breaking someone's nose." Jason told her, and her eyes widened. Never would she have imagined Jason as the violent type. He was one to argue, but with words. Not physically fight.

"Why did you break his nose?" When her brother didn't reply, she looked around the room for answers. She realized she wasn't going to get any from them, so she turned back towards her brother. She had an unsettling feeling it had to do with her. "Jason?"

"When you went to Philly before you left, Preston's brother was there as well. He recognized you in the club and took pictures." Jason started. "Preston was showing them to his friends and saying things not worth repeating."

"O my God." Lauren sighed. She didn't want her siblings to be affected by the mess surrounding her.

"The dean wanted Jason to apologize, which he did, but she said it wasn't heartfelt. He refused to give a full apology since he was defending you which resulted in him getting expelled." Elizabeth explained, and Lauren got up. She pulled her brother in a hug and he awkwardly accepted it.

"Thank you." She whispered, and he cleared his throat as she pulled back. He wasn't really the hugging type, especially not when his entire family was watching.

Lauren sighed as she looked at her parents. "Can we just be open from now on? Me too. Just no more lies or secrets."

"No more secrets." Both parents agreed.

"So, are we allowed off this couch to get some food while we continue this, or?" Stevie gave her mother a devious smile and her mother nodded.

 **TBC**


	30. Chapter 30: Real talk

**SORRY! I m a bit late but I find it difficult to find time/inspiration for this story. I wrote a long chapter as an apology for being so late, hope you enjoy!**

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When they returned after a quick break to get some drinks, they sat back down.

In the meantime, Jason's mind had been spinning. Like his other siblings, he as well had wondered what it would have been like if Lauren had grown up with them.

"You always said you wanted three kids." He stated.

"Yes, and we ended up with four." Elizabeth smiled, but Jason was saying it more out of realization.

"If you hadn't lost Lauren, would I even have been born?" Elizabeth shared a worried look with Henry.

"Of course!"

"But you only want three. Did you go for a fourth because you missed her?" Jason asked hurtful.

"You're not a replacement, Jason." Henry tried to assure his son. Not at any point had they tried to fill the hole the loss of their daughter had left with another child.

"Aren't I?" He challenged.

"No!"

"If anyone is a replacement child, it's me." Alison told him, and Elizabeth sighed. This was not how she had hoped the conversation would go.

"None of you are a replacement for anyone."

"What's meant to be will always find a way. Here you are living despite it all." Lauren suddenly cut in and she received five confused glances.

"What?" Henry frowned.

"It's a quote we had in one of the group homes in foster care because if anyone feels like a replacement child, it's foster kids."

"Sorry." Jason apologized.

"No, that's not why I said it." Lauren took a deep breath. It always felt unsettling to open up like this. "Most foster kids will probably go through some kind of identity crisis. Feeling lost, abandoned and not at all like they belong anywhere."

"Did you?" Stevie asked gently, and she noticed her sister nod.

"Jason, I believe some things happen for a reason. I used to wonder how long it would take before my caseworker would tell me I needed to move again. All I wanted was parents who loved me unconditionally. Parents like yours."

"Jase, you're not replacing anyone. We wanted each and every one of you." Elizabeth took her son in her arms and let out a deep breath.

By the end of the night, all four kids had spread out to either get ready for bed or do something else. Stevie figured now would be a good time to talk to her mom, who was sitting on the couch while her dad was in the study.

"Do you have a minute?"

"Always." She made room for her daughter to sit next to her and turned off the TV.

"Do you think she will ever feel a part of our family?" Stevie blurted out and Elizabeth needed a moment to adapt. This was not something she had been expecting.

"I hope so."

"What if she goes back home in a few months?"

"She said she couldn't just leave. I have to trust that." She sighed. She didn't really want to think about the potential departure of her daughter in a little while.

"That doesn't mean she can't leave eventually. I'm not trying to be negative, I just- this whole situation is bound to hurt someone. Whether it's us, or the people she has in the Netherlands." Stevie started plucking one of the pillows.

"I'm aware. I just want her to be happy, but honestly I don't think she is here." Elizabeth admitted. She hadn't even told Henry about it yet and though it felt wrong to confide in her daughter, it was nice she offered a listening ear.

"Why not?"

"The press, my incident in Iran. Your dad with that dirty bomb and affair allegations. All the fights."

"We're not average people." Stevie grinned.

"That we're not." Elizabeth watched her daughter for a bit. "Are you happy?"

"Yes, why wouldn't I be?"

"We haven't exactly had the steadiest relationship lately." Elizabeth admitted. She had always known Henry was the so-called Stevie whisperer.

"I'm sorry if I've been hard on you. A lot has happened over the past few months."

"I love you, you know, that right?" She hugged her daughter close and placed a kiss in her hair somewhere.

"I love you too, mom."

Life went on as usual for a few days until the tenth of the month arrived. Henry had remembered the date and agreed with Elizabeth to be home early so they could maybe do something with their kids.

They had remembered today was the anniversary of Lauren's parent's death and wanted to be there for her. Whether it was talking to her or keep her mind off it.

Elizabeth knew what it was like to grow up without parents. She had lost hers when she was younger and had only her brother to rely on. She wanted to make sure her daughter knew she was loved and that she had people who supported her.

"Any plans for today?" Elizabeth asked as she walked downstairs, followed by Henry. All four kids were in the kitchen getting ready for their day.

"School." Both Jason and Alison informed them.

"Work and I have to go if I don't want to be late." Stevie said goodbye before hurrying out the door.

"I'm going to the library to study." Lauren said as she put her plate in the dishwasher.

"I was thinking maybe we could do something." Henry offered, and he got two surprised stares from Jason and Alison.

"And we have to go to school?" Alison asked with a playful tone, hoping her parents would let her stay here.

"When you're in uni you can do whatever you want." Henry told them, but Elizabeth interrupted.

"Not whatever you want."

"Sounds great, but maybe another day? I have this research thing I need to write." Lauren told him as she drank the last of her coffee.

"Alright, we'll just do a movie night instead." Elizabeth offered, and Lauren nodded. They let it go. They would come home early and just be together then.

"Hey, I'm home." Elizabeth yelled as she walked in. She had managed to get off early and was ready to spend the rest of the day with her family.

"Hi, babe."

"Movie night?" She knew it wasn't evening yet, but she could use some peace and quiet.

"Yeah well Lauren isn't home yet."

"What? She's still studying? Henry that can't be healthy." She sighed as she grabbed her phone. She rang her daughter, but she never answered.

After waiting about half an hour, they heard her come home. Elizabeth tried to be light about the situation, not wanting to push her. They met in the kitchen and Elizabeth was shocked to find red-rimmed eyes that indicated she had been crying.

The thought of her daughter in pain all day long, without anyone to be there for her, broke her heart.

The youngest blonde had tried to mask it, but the sight of her mother caused her to break down again.

"What's-" Elizabeth started, but saw Lauren drop her stuff on the floor and flung her arms around her. The sobs coming from her daughter made her heart clench and she held her even tighter. Henry had come to the pair and wrapped his arms around them.

When she tried to push back, she felt her daughter still holding on, indicating she wasn't ready to let go just yet. Slowly, Lauren started to calm down and her mother held her head in her hands. Their eyes locked for a moment and Elizabeth placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead.

"Come on." Elizabeth whispered as she wrapped one arm around her daughter and guided her to the couch.

"I know I promised I would lean on you and come to you, but this was the one thing I couldn't come to you with." Lauren admitted as she gladly sat in her mother's embrace.

"Why not?" Henry took place on the other side of his wife and put one arm around her.

"Because it's hard and it's not fair to you guys." Her parents didn't seem to get what she meant so she elaborated. "I can't talk to you about how sad I am about losing the people who took your baby."

"You can always come to talk to us." Henry promised her.

"They weren't the ones who took you. They were the ones who raised you when they thought no one else would. They loved you and helped you become this wonderful person."

"It just doesn't feel right."

"You're right. It kinda hurts when you talk about them, but what hurts even more is seeing you keep it all in. Knowing you're in pain, but not being able to help you. I don't ever want you to think you can't talk to us because you can. About anything."

"I'm sorry for my breakdown." Lauren mumbled, and Elizabeth let out a laugh. After Iran, her daughter had seen both parents have a breakdown.

"I think we should set a limit to the amount of times you get to say I'm sorry." She joked and was glad to hear her daughter laugh.

"You don't have to apologize for anything." Henry promised her. Lauren untangled herself from her mother's arms and leaned forward, her head buried in her hands.

"God, I'm a mess." She sighed, and Elizabeth shared a look with her husband. They wanted nothing more than to help her, but they had no idea how to.

"Hello?" They heard, and Alison walked in to find them. She found the three on the couch and noticed her sister had been crying. "What's going on?"

"It's nothing." Elizabeth promised her, and Alison rolled her eyes.

"Fine, don't tell me." She sighed annoyed as she walked to the kitchen to get something to eat.

"Alison, wait!" Lauren jumped up and followed her sister, her parents being not far behind.

"I've put you and Jason and Stevie through hell and I know it's not easy. Please don't give up on me." Lauren pleaded, and Alison's jaw dropped a little. She had no idea where this was coming from and though it was true, it came out of the blue.

With no idea how to respond, she did the only thing that seemed appropriate and pulled her sister in for a hug. "I promise."

"You two and Jase and Stevie are the most important things to us." Elizabeth joined the hug and motioned for Henry to do the same.

"Are you sure nothing is going on?" Alison asked worried and Elizabeth shook her head, but Lauren felt like it was something she deserved to know.

She pulled away from the family hug and looked at her sister. "Twelve years ago, today, my parents died so it's kind of a hard day."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Alison offered a sympathetic smile.

"It's okay. It was just a difficult day."

"Ice cream?" Alison offered, and Lauren smiled as she nodded. Elizabeth picked up four spoons and Alison placed two cartons with ice cream on the kitchen counter.

"They would've disapproved of this so badly." Lauren spoke as she filled up her spoon and stuck it in her mouth.

"Eating ice cream?"

"Eating sugar before dinner." Lauren explained, and her spoon lingered over the carton before taking another scoop.

"I think they would understand for today." Henry tried to offer her comfort, but Lauren shook her head and laughed.

"No, I don't think they would. They had only three rules. Don't talk to strangers, never lie and no sugar close to dinner."

"Do you think they would've liked us?" Alison wondered what it would have been like if her sister's parents hadn't passed.

Would they even have met?

Would she be staying with them?

"I think it would have been great if they had gotten the chance to meet you." Lauren got one last scoop from the box and lay down her spoon.

"That's a politically correct answer if ever I've heard one." Henry grinned.

"They were very different from you guys."

"Do you miss them?" Alison asked, and Elizabeth watched her daughter closely. She was glad she was opening up more, but she wanted to make sure she didn't feel pushed to open up.

"Yeah." Lauren sighed. "Every day."

"What were they like?" She was glad her sister was interested in her, she just felt awkward her parents were there.

"I'm not sure now is the right time."

"Hey," Elizabeth placed a hand on her daughter's back. "I told you before you can talk to us about anything. I want to know more about the people who raised my beautiful daughter."

"Okay, well, they were kind and loving, but also strict. My mom was raised religious, but my dad wasn't. My mom got cut off from her family when she married my dad, though she stayed religious."

"Were you raised religious?" Henry wondered how this had never come up.

"Not really. My mom went to church on Sundays, but I stayed home with my dad. They had made a deal that the only thing related to religion that I had to be involved in, was praying before a meal."

"But you never do that?" Alison wondered why she had never seen her sister pray during all her time here.

"I stopped believing in religion after their death. I didn't understand how a higher power could take parents away from their child and still be admired." She hesitated whether or not she should continue but the encouraging smile from her mother told her she should. "Years later, in foster care, I once prayed for a family to take me in. I figured no harm could be done in trying."

"What was that like? Foster care."

Lauren's face went blank and Elizabeth knew they had pushed too far. She was glad her daughter had opened up, but she also knew this is where it stopped.

"I don't really like to talk about it." She told her sister who seemed to accept her answer.

Both Henry and Elizabeth's minds flashed back to the story their daughter had told them about her latest foster parent.

"Alright." Alison put her spoon in the dishwasher and grabbed her bag. "I'm going to do some homework."

"I'm going to change into something a little more comfortable and maybe then we could watch the movie?" Lauren suggested, and her mom smiled.

"Yes. I'd like that." Elizabeth watched as her daughter hurried up the stairs and she turned to Henry.

"It's a step in the right direction, babe." Henry placed his arms on her lower back and pulled her closer.

"I know. And I'm glad she's opening up more. I-" She started but was interrupted by a phone that went off. She looked around and found Lauren's phone with an unsaved number on the screen.

"Lauren, someone's calling you." She yelled and grabbed the phone before walking towards the stairs.

"Do you mind answering? I'll be right down!"

Elizabeth sighed before answering the phone. "Hello?"

Her eyes slightly widened, and she looked panicked at Henry who in turn started to worry. Luckily, Lauren walked in again and Elizabeth handed her the phone.

"Who is it?"

"I don't know." Elizabeth answered honestly. "A Dutch lady."

Lauren laughed at the panicked expression on her mother's face before bringing the phone to her ear. "Lauren van Dam."

Henry frowned when his daughter's expression flashed to worried before she plastered on a fake smile and excused herself from the room.

"What was that about?" He hoped his wife could tell him some more.

"No idea." Elizabeth watched as her daughter walked out before her eyes shifted to the stairs where Alison was now standing.

"Lauren said we were going to watch a movie?" She made her way over to the couch. Her homework could wait, she wasn't in the mood anyways.

"Yeah. I think I might order take out before we do. It's almost dinner time." Henry grabbed the phone and started dialing.

Elizabeth couldn't shake the terrible feeling that something was going on with her daughter. However, she didn't have much time to think about it because Lauren returned.

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah." The girl took place next to her sister on the couch and Elizabeth let it go.

"Do you have a picture of your adoptive parents?" Alison asked, and Lauren was surprised to find she called them her adoptive parents. Then again, they were.

"Yeah." She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her albums. "This was about a month before they passed. They took me to one of the Dutch islands."

Alison looked at the picture and saw a couple standing in the sand near the water with a little girl in front of them.

"Is that you?" Alison exclaimed, and Lauren nodded. "Mom!"

Elizabeth rushed in thinking something was wrong but calmed down when she found her two daughters still in one piece. "What is it?"

"Look at how cute Lauren was."

"Was?" Lauren pretended to be offended before laughing with her sister.

"How old were you?" Elizabeth zoomed in on the little girl that was her daughter. She was wearing a bikini and had a bucket and plastic shovel in her hands indicating she was building sandcastles.

"Six."

"Do you have more?" Alison asked excited. She had seen plenty of baby pictures of her oldest sister and brother.

"Sure." Lauren took the phone from her mother and started scrolling again. "You mean of my parents or pictures of me?"

"You." Both Elizabeth and Alison replied. They made room for their mom to sit down next to them on the couch, the movie could wait.

"I don't have many of me, but I do have a lot of my parents and I might be on a few of them." Lauren kept searching until she found a picture of her at age two.

"This is adorable." Alison smiled as she looked at her sister in the picture. She was in a bathtub, surrounded by bubbles. Her hair had been soaped and stood straight up, forming a spike on her head. "You look like such a happy kid."

"I'm only showing you the cute pictures." Lauren admitted with a devious smile.

"Can you text this to me?" Elizabeth asked as she looked at it. Her daughter did look like a happy kid with a smile she wore around all the time.

"Sure."

"Dinner is arriving shortly." Henry said as he walked back in. Alison got up and popped in the movie.

That night when everyone was getting ready for bed, Alison suddenly had an idea.

"I heard Lauren's birthday is coming up." Alison stormed into her parent's room and found the both of them in bed, reading.

"Hello to you too." Henry's words brushed past his daughter as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"I thought maybe we could get a nice present from all of us." Alison told then excitedly.

"Did you have anything in mind?" If Henry knew his daughter as well as he thought, she already made a list of potential gifts.

"I thought something that reminds her of us." Alison explained, and both parents listened intriguingly. "A necklace with her initials."

"That's nice." Elizabeth smiled, but Alison wasn't finished yet.

"It should be something that reminds her she's part of the family, so I thought instead of her initials LVD, we could do LM. As in Lauren Mccord?"

"I like the sound of that." Elizabeth repeated the name, "Lauren Mccord."

"Sounds like a plan, noodle." Henry said, and Alison jumped up. She rambled something about picking out a necklace with Stevie as she walked out.

"You okay?" Henry watched his wife stare at the wall in front of her while she sat on the edge of the bed.

"Lauren Mccord." She sighed, "It could have been like that."

"It should have been like that." Henry took off his reading glasses.

"At least Alison seems happier."

"Who knew picking out jewelry could make her happy." Henry laughed as he pulled on Elizabeth's shoulder. She fell back on the bed and he climbed on top of her.

"Remember that next time I'm sad." She teased, and he leaned down to kiss her. "I still have some work to do."

"Me too." Henry sighed and climbed off her. He grabbed his bag and started unloading some papers. He found an envelope and opened it.

"What's that?" Elizabeth walked over to him and stopped when she saw the pictures in his hands. He handed them to her and she skipped through them. "Henry, where did you get these?"

"I- I don't know."

"Someone is stalking our kids." She threw the pictures on the bed and stared at them. There were pictures of Jason at school, Alison at soccer practice, Stevie at work and Lauren in the city. It caught her eye that there were more pictures of Lauren, but she shook it off.

"What do we do?"

"We call the FBI."

 **TBC**


	31. Chapter 31: birthday

**I think I'm going to wrap this story up in a few chapters because I have been dragging it on for way too long…**

* * *

The following morning, Henry and Elizabeth had a meeting with an FBI agent and he convinced them to give each kid a detail. Lauren was the only one who didn't have one and they decided to talk to her.

"-so, we need your devices for a checkup." Henry explained, and everyone handed in their laptop and phones.

"And DS would like to give you a one-man detail as well. Just like the other three." Elizabeth told Lauren and saw her get ready to push back.

"Why?"

"Because we all have them." Henry simply stated as he gathered the devices.

"No, I don't need a bodyguard. I can take care of myself."

"Lauren." Elizabeth pleaded but didn't get a chance to convince her because an argument blew up between Henry and Jason. He refused to hand in his phone and laptop.

For now, she let it go, but spoke to Henry about it later.

"She doesn't want it, Henry. What now?"

"I spoke to agent Harvey this afternoon and he told me they can provide an undercover agent. He'll just follow her around without her noticing."

"Should we do that?" Elizabeth wanted her daughter to be safe and if it meant doing it with an undercover agent, she would do it

"I think we do." Henry grabbed his phone to let the FBI know.

When Elizabeth got home that night, she found Henry in the study. "Hi."

"Hi. There's leftovers in the fridge."

"Will you please sit with me while I eat." Elizabeth sighed, and she walked towards the kitchen, followed by her husband. She was about to announce she was home when she heard Jason talking to Lauren as they were playing video games.

"May I ask you something?" Jason asked as he was racing his sister in the game.

"Always." Lauren replied.

"No, you need to push both buttons when you turn." Jason explained to her, unaware of both parents staring at them. "Why do you call mom and dad still by their first name?"

Lauren lowered her console and turned to her brother who was still very much playing the game. "Because I have a mom and dad."

"Keep playing." Jason told her, and she did. She figured it might be too personal and awkward for him if they only just talked. "So, you don't see them as your parents?"

"I-" She sighed and avoided the question. "Would you mind if I stopped calling them by their first names?"

"No. They're your parents."

Elizabeth glanced at Henry and they retreated back into the kitchen.

"I'm home." She yelled, pretending she just walked in.

"Hi." She heard coming from the couch.

For a few days, everything was silent. They hadn't gotten any threats and things seemed to quiet down. That was until three days later, the day before her birthday, Lauren took her parents aside.

"At the risk of sounding like a crazy person, I think I'm being followed." Henry shared a worried glace with his wife. Had the stalker come back?

"I noticed him yesterday and then again today." She pulled out her phone. "I took a selfie with him in the background."

Elizabeth took the phone and zoomed in on the man behind her. Sighing, she tried not to give anything away.

"We'll get this picture to the FBI." Henry told her, and she nodded as she walked out.

"How the hell did the undercover agent get caught by an eighteen-year-old?" Henry hissed.

"I don't know, but we need a plan. I can't have Lauren thinking she is being followed by a crazy person."

"We need to tell the kids." Henry sighed, and Elizabeth nodded.

"We should wait till after her birthday, right?"

"Yeah. We've got agents with them." Henry agreed and wrapped her in a hug.

He had no idea why this was happening or what it meant but it was starting to really frustrate him.

The day passed by and everyone made sure they had the day off tomorrow. Jason and Alison still had to go to school, but they would be home as soon as they were free.

The morning started like any other. Jason and Alison got ready for school, while Henry and Elizabeth got everything ready.

"Did a party bomb explode?" Jason asked when he noticed the decorations and balloons.

"I just want it to be perfect." Elizabeth sighed as she took a break from blowing up balloons.

They wanted it to be a bit of a 'surprise', so they were glad she wasn't up yet. Both parents were aware she always thought her birthday wasn't for another week, but they wanted to celebrate it on her actual birthday as well.

"It looks great, mom." Alison watched as her mother handed her a small box. "Is this it?"

"Yes, I picked it up yesterday, but I couldn't show you yet." The box contained a small silver necklace with a diamond shaped, silver pendant. In it were the letters L.M. engraved in cursive.

"It's beautiful." Alison handed the box back and they all looked up when they heard someone coming down the stairs.

They found a clearly tired Stevie. She had set her alarm, so she was ready for her sister's birthday.

"Really, mom, cake at seven in the morning?" Stevie noticed the cake her mother was decorating with candles.

"Has anyone seen the nine?" She asked as she put a 1 shaped candle on the cake.

Jason looked around and picked it up from the floor. He held up a broken nine and his mother sighed.

"It's her first birthday with us so you can just leave the 1." He tried to comfort her.

"Babe stop obsessing." Henry hugged her from behind. Everyone was so focused on getting everything ready, they didn't hear the birthday girl walking down the stairs until she spoke.

"Good morning?" She said with a questionable tone. Taking in her surroundings, she remembered her parents telling her that her actual birthday was the fifteenth.

"Surprise!" They all yelled, and she smiled at the excitement. Alison was the first one to give her a hug a and congratulate her. The rest of the family followed, and Elizabeth guided her to the now candle lit cake.

"Make a wish, baby." Her hands on her daughter's shoulders as she watched the girl close her eyes before blowing out the candle.

"I have to ask, what's with the 1?" Lauren asked after she blew out the candle.

"The nine broke, but Jason pointed out it's your first birthday with us, so it still kind of works." Henry informed her and held up the broken candle.

"We really need to go, but we have a present for you." Alison urged her mother to hurry up. She didn't want to be late for school, but also didn't want to miss her sister opening her present.

"There's more, but this is from all of us." Elizabeth handed her the box and waited for her to open it.

A smile appeared on her daughter's face when she noticed the necklace. Carefully, she picked it up to examine it better. The pendant said LM and before she could even wonder what it meant, Alison explained.

"The LM is for Lauren Mccord. To make sure you know you're one of us." Lauren hugged her sister and Stevie joined in. It didn't take long before it became a family hug.

"We'll be back this afternoon for cake and more presents." Alison promised her before rushing out with Jason.

"I'm going to get dressed." Stevie yawned as she dragged herself up the stairs. She wasn't usually up this early, but for her sister's birthday it was worth it.

"I love it, thank you." Lauren told her parents again and Elizabeth helped her put it on.

"It looks great." Henry promised her. He hoped it would show her she is a part of the family.

"Also, gafelisitee." Her mom said, and she gave her a confused look. She had no idea what she was talking about and her mother let out a nervous chuckle.

"Sorry, I Googled how to say happy birthday in Dutch, but it seems like I did a terrible job." She bit her lip and watched her daughter smile.

"While it may not have been completely understandable, I appreciate the effort. Really."

"So, what is the correct way to pronounce it?" Henry asked.

"Gefeliciteerd." Lauren tried to hold back her laugh as she heard Henry try to say it.

"I think we need some more lessons." He put an arm on his wife's back as she continued to try to say the word.

"There's one more thing. I've been thinking about this for a long time. Since day one actually, but I wasn't ready yet. Being ready to say it and actually saying it is a big difference. I've been scared that saying would maybe screw things up, even though you two have made it clear it won't." Lauren rambled and a hand on her shoulder from Henry calmed her down.

"Breathe."

"Last week showed me no matter what happens, for some reason you won't give up on me and I think that makes you great parents." She put her left arm around her mother and her right arm around her dad, not being able to say it to their face. "That makes you a great mom and you a great dad."

Elizabeth slowly pushed back a little, hoping that it wasn't her mind playing tricks on her, but once her eyes met Lauren's she couldn't control the tears that started to spill over.

Lauren heard the muffled sobs coming from her mother and it made her heart break. She wondered if she had made a mistake by saying it. Pushing back, she noticed the tears on her mother's face.

"I shouldn't have said anything." She mumbled and though it was barely audible, Elizabeth still caught it.

"No, no. I just never thought I would hear you call me mom." She choked back the sobs and pulled her daughter close again. The statement had caught her off guard, but she knew it would be one of her most cherished moments.

Henry had tried to stay strong, but the word coming out if his daughter's mouth had made him tear up as well. He shot her a small smile. It wasn't something he had expected to hear, especially this soon after everything and in their current situation, but he was certainly glad to.

"This is the best birthday ever, and it's not even mine." He joked, trying to lighten the mood. Both mother and daughter laughed as they let go of each other.

Elizabeth once again reached out and touched Lauren's face, and she figured it maybe had to do a little bit with exhaustion, but she relished the feeling of Lauren relaxing into her palm.

"I'm lucky to be your mom." She whispered and leaned against her husband for support.

"Anything you want to do for your birthday?" Henry asked, and his daughter shrugged.

"I don't really mind." She told him, and he looked around the kitchen.

"How about we start with breakfast?" He grabbed some eggs and started making an omelet when Elizabeth's phone rang. "State or White House?"

"Both. It's Russia again." She sighed as she gathered her stuff and turned to her daughter. "I'm really sorry. I want to spend your birthday with you."

"Don't worry about it. Go make the world safe."

Elizabeth hugged her daughter for a moment. "I love you and I promise I will be home as soon as I can." She kissed Henry goodbye and with that she was out the door.

"Do you have any birthday traditions?" Henry asked as he was making breakfast. They had a laughy string tradition in their house and wondered if she had anything like it.

"Not really. Usually just go out with friends and celebrate." She sipped her coffee slowly and looked around the kitchen. There were balloons that had 19 written on them and other decorations.

Henry noticed her watching the décor and smile. "Elizabeth kind of went all out."

"I like it. It's nice." Lauren promise him. "So how long do you think she'll be out?"

"Depends, either she'll be home in a few hours or late this night." There wasn't really an in-between for her somehow. "Why?"

"I just thought if she can't celebrate with me, I could celebrate with her. I mean she has to eat lunch at some point, right?"

Henry grinned. Knowing his wife, she would probably not eat unless Blake handed her food, so it was unlikely she would make time for lunch. However, he appreciated the gesture and didn't want to shut his daughter down.

"If she's not home by then, I think she'd love that." The two had breakfast and Elizabeth indeed wasn't home yet by the time lunch time came around.

Lauren decided to call her and see if she had time for lunch.

"Hey are you okay?" She heard, and she smiled.

"Hi, yeah. Henry told me you forget to eat when you're busy, so I thought I would bring some." She offered and closed her eyes when she didn't hear a reply. She knew she shouldn't have asked but before she could apologize, her mother spoke again.

"I'd love that." Her tone was gentle and soft. It reassured her it was okay to come by, so she said goodbye and told her she would be there in about an hour.

When she walked downstairs again, she found Stevie at the kitchen table and she looked up at her.

"You look nice." She said, and Lauren shyly looked down. She was wearing the same thing as when she met Henry for the first time. Light washed jeans and a black blouse tucked into it.

"Thanks. I'm not sure if it's appropriate for the State Department but I don't really own dresses." She said, and Stevie assured her she looked fine.

"You're going to see mom?" She asked, and Lauren nodded.

"I figured I would bring my birthday to her." She said before grabbing her black jacket and moved to find Henry.

"Hey, so what does Elizabeth like for lunch?" She asked, and he looked up from his work. He couldn't help but notice the use of first name again, but he decided to give her time.

"There's this salad bar on the way to her work, Fred will take you and he'll know what to get her." Henry said, getting up.

"I was thinking about taking the bus." She said as she awaited his reaction. When he froze but didn't speak, she continued. She knew her parents had a safety concern and she had already denied a detail. "But I could totally use a ride."

He got his wallet and took out some bills. He wanted to hand it to her, but she refused.

"I'm already having one of your guys chauffeur me around, I got lunch." She laughed before walking out. He knew he could've pushed harder, but he also knew his daughter was so used to standing on her own two feet.

Just after 1 pm, she walked with Fred towards the state department building. She had gotten past security with his help and now had a badge around her neck.

Soon after, they reached the elevator and went up. She looked around at the building and all the different types of people in it.

"Blake." She heard Fred say and she saw her mother's assistant greet them. She remembered him from her first visit to the State department.

She noticed an unfamiliar man and a woman coming towards them, but Fred guided her to a door and knocked on it before entering.

"Ma'am, your daughter is here." He said, and she walked in.

"Thank you." She heard her mother say.

"I'll wait outside." Fred said, and Lauren turned around to hand him his order before he left.

"Hi." Elizabeth said as she finally took her daughter in her arms.

Elizabeth smiled before guiding her to the couch. Lauren's eyes landed on the tv and she noticed pictures of herself. It was some story about their recent trip to Cuba and Elizabeth quickly turned it off.

"Sorry." She mumbled, and Lauren turned to her.

"I brought you favorite." She said, ignoring what had just happened. "Or at least Fred said it was your favorite."

"Thank you." Elizabeth said as she gratefully accepted the box and opened it. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until now.

There was a comfortable silence as they ate. Her phone rang, and she shot her daughter an apologetic look before picking it up. She smiled as she saw who it was.

"Hey." She said and mouthed. 'Henry' to her daughter.

"Is Lauren already there?" Henry asked, wanting to know if she got there safely.

"Yes, she's here." She told him.

"Let me know when she leaves, okay?" Henry asked, knowing he was overprotective, but he couldn't help it.

"I will."

"I love you." Henry spoke, and she couldn't help a smile appearing.

"I love you too." She hung up the phone and turned her attention back to her daughter.

"What's your favorite color?" She asked, and Lauren looked at her confused.

"I'm sorry?" She asked, wondering if she heard it right.

"Your favorite color." Elizabeth repeated, before adding, "I want to know everything about you."

"Okay." Lauren said doubtful, thinking about the question for a moment. "Blue."

"Favorite place to visit?" Elizabeth asked.

"Here of course." Lauren said, and she received a smile. "What about you?"

"New York. It's where Henry and I went on our first anniversary."

They continued asking each other basic questions until they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Excuse me, ma'am. You had a staff meeting planned at 2pm for an update on Russia, would you like me to cancel?" Blake asked as he peeked around the door. She looked at her watch and realized they had been sitting here for more than an hour.

"No, let them in." Elizabeth sighed as she put down her food. Blake closed the door again and she turned to her daughter. "Would it be okay if I introduced you to my staff?" She asked, wanting her daughter to be okay with it too.

"Sure." She said, and everyone walked in. She noticed the same woman and two men that approached her earlier before Fred took her to her mother's office.

"Guys, this is my daughter Lauren. This is Nadine, my chief of staff." She said, pointing at a petite older woman. She shook her hand and smiled before continuing to the next person. "Daisy, my press coordinator, Matt, my speech writer. And you've already met Jay."

"Nice to meet you." She told them and stepped back to stand next to her mother after she shook everybody's hand.

"Daisy is the one who told us about you." Elizabeth told her, and Daisy gave a sympathetic smile.

"I will leave you to your meeting." Lauren told her mother and grabbed her stuff. She hugged her mother and said goodbye to the others.

Fred brought her home safely and she found Stevie on the couch while Henry was in the study.

 **TBC**


	32. Chapter 32: Lies

**Im honestly so** **embarrassed for the lack of uploads... IM SORRY! I hope this long chapter will make up for it**

* * *

Lauren watched as her mom walked into the kitchen that night. A worried expression on her face.

"You okay?" She watched her mom steady herself on the kitchen counter, "What's wrong?"

Her mother seemed oblivious to her presence and Lauren watched her pick up a glass of water as she read a text on her phone.

"Hello? Earth to Elizabeth." Lauren tried again, and she got up as she started to get worried. There was one more thing she could try. "Mom!"

With a loud crash, the glass her mother had been holding shattered on the floor and her mother's eyes snapped to her.

It was only the second time her daughter had called her mom. A number she was painfully aware was much lower than it ever should have been.

Lauren quickly moved to pick up the large pieces of glass. "What's going on?"

"Sorry, I guess I just need to get used to hearing you say that." Elizabeth mumbled as she helped clean up the mess.

"So, it seems." Lauren kept a close watch on her mother and Elizabeth threw the last pieces of glass in the bin.

"What did you want to say?"

"What's going on? When I left your office this afternoon everything was fine. Was it something I said?" Lauren replayed their lunch over in her head, trying to find the moment she offended her mother or overstepped.

"No! It's just work. I shouldn't have taken it out on you." Elizabeth told her, and they heard someone coming down the stairs.

"Hey babe." Henry kissed her, unaware of what had just happened before he turned to his daughter. "So, anything special you want for your birthday dinner?"

"No." She replied absently, still unsure of what was going on with her mother.

"Did I interrupt something?" Henry shifted his gaze from his daughter to his wife.

"No." Elizabeth plastered a smile on her face, one that both Lauren and Henry looked straight through.

"We can just order in, I don't really mind." Lauren told her dad and Henry nodded as he walked off to order.

Lauren's eyes followed her mother as she went upstairs and several minutes later everyone was downstairs and waiting for dinner. Alison was telling them about something that happened at school, but everyone seemed to be preoccupied except for Stevie.

Half way into their conversation about block heels, the bell rang signaling them dinner had arrived.

"Did you get the job, by the way?" Alison asked as they started eating.

"No, but I applied for a similar job and I'm waiting to hear back from them." Lauren's mind still shifted to the weird reaction she had gotten from her mother earlier.

"You're not waiting till you graduate in February and find a full-time job?" Stevie cut in.

"I might go for my master's degree and so I will need the money." Lauren informed them, and Alison suddenly remembered her sister grew up in the Netherlands.

"Wait, will you do your masters degree in the Netherlands?"

All eyes were suddenly on Lauren and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I- I don't know yet."

"Will you go back to Europe once you've finished studying in February?" Jason now joined the conversation.

"I don't know. I don't have dual citizenship and maybe I won't even get it, right?" She looked at her mother.

"Right." She replied, and Henry managed to hold in his gasp. He had known his wife for more than two decades and he knew earlier something was bothering her. Finally, he figured out what it was, but for the sake of the kids he decided to wait until they were alone.

"But if you do get it?" Alison's voice sounded almost scared.

"I said before that I can't just get up and leave and I meant it." Lauren hoped it would put their minds at ease.

Dinner went by pretty fast and afterwards they decided to watch a movie. The kids set up while Henry and Elizabeth finished up the dishes.

"Lauren's dual citizenship got approved." Elizabeth blurted out and Henry put down the bowl in the dishwasher before turning to her. "I got a text from Blake this afternoon."

"You heard her, she can't just get up and leave." Henry put his arms loosely around her.

"Henry I can't lose her again."

"I know, but we can't keep this from her."

Elizabeth sighed. She knew Henry was right, but she couldn't bear the thought of her daughter possibly leaving again.

"Can we just enjoy tonight."

"We'll tell her tomorrow." Henry agreed and stole a kiss before they joined the kids to give Lauren the rest of her presents.

"Jason, a hand?" Henry asked and Jason got up while Elizabeth sat on the couch between Stevie and Lauren.

"I thought we were watching a movie?" Lauren frowned.

"Not yet." Her mother told her, "We have some presents for you."

"Oh, you didn't have to d-" Lauren started as she watched Henry and Jason walk in. " _Holy crap_. Did you buy an entire store?"

"We have nineteen years to make up for." Henry told her as he put down two bags and Jason set down another.

"What? No." Lauren sighed. She didn't want her parents to feel obligated. "You don't owe me anything."

"Yes we do and once I got going, I couldn't really stop shopping." Elizabeth admitted as she handed the first present.

After a little while, Lauren had opened all presents but one. It was mostly decor for her room or school supplies. When Elizabeth grabbed the last present, she turned to her daughter.

"Before you were born, we got this for you but we never got a chance to give it to you." Elizabeth handed it to Lauren who carefully peeled open the packaging.

"Bobby." Lauren spoke as she picked up the stuffed animal. It was a penguin with the name bobby stitched on the belly.

"We gave each of our kids a stuffed animal after birth and ever since you got back, I've been wanting to give this to you." Elizabeth said. It felt good to be finally able to give it to her daughter. "I know you're too old for it."

"No, I love it." She assured her mother as she poked the tummy of the penguin. She had always wanted a childhood teddy bear. "Thank you, guys."

She hugged her mother and next her siblings and dad.

"Jason's got a fox, Stevie has a monkey and I have a giraffe." Alison informed her sister. "This was mom's must-have for all her kids before the dryvac stage."

"Do they have names?" Lauren asked as she ran her fingers over the letters.

"Ricky the fox."

"Joey the giraffe."

"Molly the monkey."

"Now we can add Bobby to the collection." Lauren smiled as she sat it down on the coffee table.

"You don't have to keep it." Henry told her. "We just wanted to give it to you but we know you're past that stage in your life."

"Just because I got it about nineteen years too late, doesn't mean I won't love it like I got it at birth."

"Alright. Who is read for the movie?" Stevie jumped up to turn on the TV.

Only ten minutes in, a phone rang and they all looked at their mother. They had hoped for a family night, but Elizabeth shook her head as she realized it wasn't her.

"That's me, sorry." Lauren jumped up and walked out. Everyone returned their attention back to the movie as they figured it was probably a friend saying happy birthday.

That was until Lauren walked back in, picked up the remote and paused the movie.

"Hey." Alison complained, but quickly stopped when she saw the fury in her sister's eyes.

"What the hell?" She stood in front of her parents with her arms now crossed in front of her chest. "You lied to me."

"What?" Henry asked confused, neither one aware their daughter now knew her dual citizenship had been approved as well.

"I can't believe this. You promised no more lies. Did you really think I wouldn't find out I was granted dual citizenship?"

"Wha- How did you find out?" Elizabeth had no idea how she could've found out this soon.

"That's your response?" Lauren huffed, "If you must know, Blake told me."

"We were going to tell you tomorrow." Henry told her, but Lauren shook her head.

"Why should I believe you?"

"I would hope as you parents, you have at least a little bit of trust in us." Henry offered. He was aware they had kept things from her in the past, but it had always been in her best interest.

"Yeah and I had hoped you trust me enough to tell me, but boy was I wrong."

"This isn't about trust." Elizabeth argued. "I didn't tell you because I was worried you'd take the opportunity to go back to your home country. I was going to tell you, but it seems like you've got your own informant in my office."

"Seriously? Informant?" The conversation had moved up from talking to near shouting.

"Why else is Blake calling you?" Elizabeth hadn't expected this from her assistant. He was always loyal to her.

"You want to know why? Because I had him help me change my birth certificate!"

"What?" Both Henry and Elizabeth said simultaneously.

Lauren sighed. She had wanted to surprise her parents with this when they were sure they could actually pull it off. She didn't want to give them false hope.

Lauren's anger subsided, and she sat down on the coffee table as she dropped her head in her hands. "Blake and I have been talking to a lawyer. I wanted to see if I could change the names of my parents on my birth certificate to your names and thereby change my last name."

"You wanted to change your name to Mccord?" Henry stammered, unsure if he had heard her correctly.

Lauren looked up and sighed. "I wanted to change it to how it should've been. With you two as my parents and Mccord as my last name."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Elizabeth asked, her mind having caught up with what was going on.

"You don't get to ask that, that's my line. I get that this might be scary for you, but did you really think tanking my way home was going to help?"

"That's the thing. You are home, but you don't see it like that." Elizabeth sighed.

"Look, the Netherlands will always be my home. I grew up there and it's a part of me I will never give up, but the US has become my home too."

"I'm sorry. I should've told you when I found out." Elizabeth admitted, and Lauren offered a small smile.

"Does this mean you'll go back since you have dual citizenship?" Alison asked her and all three had forgotten about the three kids in the room.

"If- and that's still an if- I choose to go back, my master's degree will only be for a year or two." She tried to offer, and Alison nodded though it was little consolation.

"We can always come and visit, right?" Jason looked at his parents who both nodded.

Alison restarted the movie to keep her mind occupied and everyone watched it, though no one was really paying attention.

Thoughts were swirling Elizabeth's mind and as soon as the credits rolled, she turned to her daughter. "Why didn't you tell us you were going to change your certificate?"

"Babe." Henry placed a gentle hand on her arm. He wanted her to give it a rest before another argument broke loose.

"Because I didn't know if I even could. I wanted to weigh my options and figure things out for myself."

"Weigh your options? What does that even mean?" Stevie now cut in, though her tone was not at all accusatory.

"It means that I wanted to think about it before I ban my parents from my birth certificate and erase the hard work they put in raising me. The effort they put in supporting and in loving me."

"So, have you made a decision?" Jason now involved himself in the conversation too.

"No."

"We can take a vote." Alison suggested and got two angry glares from her parents. "What?"

"This isn't our decision to make." Henry said stern, but Lauren let out a laugh.

"No, I think it's a good idea. I want to know where everyone here stands before I do something. I mean it affects you all too."

"Okay so who thinks she should become a legal Mccord?" Alison asked as she raised her hand. The two siblings followed, and four pairs of eyes now stared expectantly at their parents.

"You know what we think, but we don't need to share a last name to be a family. To us you've always been a Mccord." Elizabeth told her as she and Henry raised their hand.

"So, does this mean you'll do it?" Stevie asked excited.

"It means I'll think about it."

At three o'clock the following morning, Elizabeth woke up and spent half an hour twisting and turning to the point where she annoyed herself.

Sighing, she threw open the covers and walked downstairs. Halfway down the stairs, she heard a voice but couldn't make out what they were saying. When she reached the kitchen, she found Lauren video calling someone on her phone.

She took a moment to watch her daughter. How lucky she was to get her back. Never did she imagine she would be celebrating her birthday again or taking trips together.

"Hey." Lauren turned around after she had seen Elizabeth standing behind her on her screen.

"Sorry I didn't mean to interrupt."

"You didn't." Lauren promised, and she unplugged her earbuds from her phone. "I want you to meet Lieke."

Elizabeth walked closer to the phone and noticed a blonde girl smiling at her. Her hair looked similar to Stevie's and she had green eyes. "Hi, nice to meet you."

"You too, ma'am." Lieke spoke, "Lulu has told me a lot about you."

"Please no ma'am, just Elizabeth." She laughed. "Wait, lulu?"

"It's a nickname." Lauren explained. "A story for another time."

"So, Lauren told me you're currently studying in Tokyo?"

"Yes. I'm here till February like Lauren."

Elizabeth smiled but hated the reminder that her daughter could return to Europe in a few weeks. "I will leave you two girls to talk."

"It was nice to meet you."

"You too." Elizabeth watched as Lauren resumed talking in Dutch and turned around to go back upstairs.

"Wait." Lauren had told Lieke they would talk another time and watched as her mother turned around. "Are you okay?"

"I didn't mean for you to stop talking to your friend." Elizabeth said guilty.

"We talk on a daily basis, she'll manage." Lauren joked. "Did I wake you up, though?

"No. I couldn't sleep anyways." Elizabeth collapsed on the couch and Lauren followed her.

"Work?"

"You." Elizabeth sighed. "What about you? Or are you just up to talk to your friend?"

"No, I couldn't sleep either."

"Why's that?"

"You." They both chuckled and there was a small silence.

"What would you do?" Lauren asked and they both continued to stare at the turned off TV screen.

"I don't know. I know what I want you to do, though."

"Stay here." Lauren said knowingly.

"But I also want you to be happy and if that isn't here.." Elizabeth picked up a pillow and hugged it tight.

"I don't want to lose my life in the Netherlands. It's all I've ever known but life here is pretty great."

"It's your decision to make."

Lauren folded her legs under herself and turned to her mother. "I can't do this."

"There is no right answer." Elizabeth repositioned so she could look at her daughter better. "But we are behind you no matter what you choose to do."

"But I can't choose. That's the thing." Lauren's voice cracked, and Elizabeth offered a watery smile.

"This isn't something any nineteen-year-old should have to deal with."

"That doesn't change the fact that I need to make a choice soon."

"You have a home here. Always." Elizabeth promised her. "Whether you choose to stay or go."

"I know."

"I remember when Ali was born, I wouldn't let anyone hold her except for Henry. I think it was after three weeks when I allowed Isabelle to be the first one to hold her."

"Because of me?"

"Because I was terrified of losing another daughter." Elizabeth admitted. Finding out she was pregnant with Alison, and the entire pregnancy in general, had been terrifying. She had gone believing her body had given up last time.

"I'm so sorry. I never thought about what it was like for you. I'm really sorry you had to go through that."

"Losing you, it was the worst thing that ever happened to me."

"Wait, you thought I was dead." Lauren suddenly stated, her thoughts swirling around. "Did you- Did you think it was your fault?"

Elizabeth started to play with the hem of her shirt. She never told anyone except for Henry and they had only talked about it a handful of times. "You were under my protection. I was supposed to guard you and I failed. I failed as your mother."

"No. No." Lauren spoke. "You didn't fail. You raised three beautiful children and they love you, so much. I might not say it enough, but I do really appreciate how patient and loving you are with me."

"I just want to go back in time and fix this. Take you back and punish the man who did this."

"Why didn't you?"

"Go back in time?" Elizabeth asked with a frown stretched across her forehead.

"No, punish the man responsible."

"I wanted to, but then I got you back and though it wasn't perfect in the beginning, I was too focused on you."

"Would you do it now?" Lauren had always wondered why they hadn't pressed charges but had never really wanted to bring it up.

"Do you want us to?"

"I could've done so myself, but I chose not to. I'm glad I met you and I don't want to open old wounds." She had thought about it, but back then it would mean her parents would find out. She had chosen to process the news before confronting her parents, but then suddenly the news got out. By then the situation was complicated enough without suing the man responsible.

"He will never be able to take you from me, again. As long as I have you, I don't want to waste a single moment on him."

"Me neither."

 **TBC**


	33. Chapter 33: Stalker

The following day Elizabeth went to work early, dragging Blake in at the crack of dawn with her.

She wanted to get some work done before the madness started, but things took a turn for the worse when she noticed an evnvelope on her desk with her name written on it. As she opened it, she looked around to see if anything had changed in her office. Everyone was still in the same place and nothing seemed to be missing, so she carefully opened the envelope.

Inside, she found four pictures, one of each kid. Each picture had one letter written on it and when she arranged her kids by age, she read the word quit.

"Blake, call the FBI." She ordered as she pulled out her phone and called Henry.

"Miss me already?" Henry teased as he answered.

"Henry, you need to come to the office."

"What's wrong?" He asked worried as he was already looking for his jacket.

"I'm okay. The stalker came into my office." She felt her body starting to tremble and took a few deep breaths to calm down.

"What did they do?"

"They sent pictures of the kids." She sighed as she remembered the word written on them.

"I'm on my way." Henry promised her, and he quickly wrote a note for the kids before walking out.

"Henry, what do they want?" She pleaded and closed her eyes.

"I don't know. I'll be there in a few."

A little while later he reached her office and pulled her in for a hug. He looked over her shoulder and found her office filled with agents.

"We have to tell the kids, don't we?"

"We were planning to anyways, but yeah." He agreed.

She knew they had to but as a mom she was terrified to tell them. They had already protested when she was first offered the job. This would only give them more leverage and maybe they were right.

Should she just quit? She would do anything to make this all go away. For her kids to be safe because at the end of the day she was a mom first. Always.

Henry grabbed her hand to support her as they gathered the kids on the couch that night.

"What's going on?" Jason asked as he walked in with Stevie.

"Where are your sisters?" Henry asked, and Jason shrugged.

"Ali was in the shower, but I told her to hurry up and Lauren was stressing because she had a deadline tonight and her laptop started doing updates." Stevie informed her parents.

"We'll just wait for them." Henry said but Stevie and Jason were already imagining what it could be.

"Is one of you sick?" Stevie asked, and Henry sighed.

"No. We're both fine."

"I'm here, I'm here." Lauren said as she ran down the stairs and joined them on the couch. "So, what's up?"

"We need to wait for Ali." Stevie explained and as if on queue, Alison walked down with her hair wrapped in a towel.

"Your mom and I need to tell you something and it's going to sound a bit scary."

"We got some pictures a little while ago and we know it's going to sound scary, but someone took pictures of you." Elizabeth told them, and Stevie was the first to react.

"Like a stalker?"

"Yes."

"So, the guy that followed me, is that him?" Lauren asked and felt like something else was going on.

"No. We had an undercover agent follow you around for your protection." Henry told her. He didn't want Elizabeth to have to be the bad guy.

"Wait, do they know who it is?" Lauren asked, the information brushing past her. Both parents had expected her to be upset.

"No, not yet."

"So, now what?" Jason asked his parents, trying not to show he was scared.

"The FBI is doing everything they can."

"Is it just the pictures?" Alison asked.

"No. This morning someone had gone into my office." Elizabeth explained.

"How do you know?" Stevie wondered. If they had the person on camera, they could easily figure out who it was.

"They wrote the word QUIT on pictures of you."

"Who thinks mom should quit her job?" Jason raised his hand and so did Alison.

"Guys!" Stevie said stern. "Stop it. Mom is not quitting her job."

"Why not? That's clearly what it takes for it to stop." Jason shot back.

"We can't give into people like this." Henry told him.

"Why not? It would keep all of us safe." Jason argued.

"Do you really think he'll stop if mom quits?" Stevie asked.

"We have to at least try." Alison replied.

"We're gonna catch this guy. I promise." Henry told all of them, but Jason still wasn't convinced.

"Just like you promised mom would be alright in Iran?" Jason stormed out and both parents decided to give them a moment.

"We understand that this is scary and if you guys want to talk about it, your dad and I are here."

That night Lauren wanted to talk to her parents about something but when she reached their bedroom, she heard them arguing.

"-Someone's threatening our kids, and it's my fault."

"Elizabeth, no one believes in your work, in you, more than I do."

"Do you know who else is obsessed with me? Hezbollah, ISIS, the Sinaloa Cartel. Any one of them would happily murder our family if it would further their agenda. So, you know, that's fun to live with."

The statement had scared Lauren and she figured she should leave them be. As she turned around, the floorboard creaked, and she found both parents were now looking at her. "Sorry."

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth asked, and she reluctantly stepped into the room.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I just- I wanted to see if I could do anything for you." Lauren lied. She had come here to tell them something, but after what she'd just heard she didn't want to put something else on their pile of problems.

"I'm sorry if I scared you." Her mom stepped closer and she shrugged. It had scared her, but she didn't feel the need to tell them that.

"It's fine. I'm sorry this is happening to you."

Elizabeth needed the comfort of her daughter and put her arm around her. "Me too but I promise I'll fix this."

"Be careful." Lauren warned her before walking out again.

"Henry, maybe I should cancel this India thing. It doesn't feel right to leave you guys."

"Or maybe you should take the kids with you." Henry suggested, and she liked that idea. That way her kids would certainly be safe since their stalker was in the US.

"Guys?" The pair walked down and found all four kids on the couch.

"I have to go to India next week for an event. I was thinking maybe you guys would like to join?" Elizabeth offered, and Alison already smiled excitedly. She loved that she got to explore all these different countries thanks to her mom's job.

"Yes!"

"Jase?"

"Sure, why not."

"I can't." Stevie sighed. "I have to work."

"Alright." Henry was staying home as well due to work, so she wouldn't be by herself. "Lauren?"

"Are you kidding? Count me in!"

"Okay great. I'll let my staff know." Elizabeth smiled. She was glad her kids would have something to look forward to.

 **TBC**


End file.
